"Kookie oppa!" a 6 year-old girl named, Minyoung screamed as she ran into Jungkook's house and into his bedroom.
"Wake up! Its your birthday, Kookie wake up!" screamed Minyoung as she jumped on top of the sleepy boy underneath her.
Jungkook slowly opened his eyes cringing from the loud noise coming from the although tiny, but full of energy young girl in front of him. "Minyoung-ah...," whined Jungkook with a still unconscious mind. "Give me 5 more minutes," he pouted.
"No, I Have a surprise for you! Get up!" Minyoung screamed again while pulling one of Jungkook's arms to get the boy out of his bed.
After hearing the word 'surprise' Jungkook snapped out of his morning daze and hopped out of bed. "Okay, lead the way, Ms. Choi!" Jungkook said as he raised his right arm making a salute acting as if he was in the army talking to his commander.
Minyoung smiled brightly and grabbed his hand. "Let's go!" she screamed and ran out of his house and into their backyard.
Jungkook and Minyoung were neighbors. As a matter of fact, they were more than neighbors; rather they were the best of friends, growing up along side one another ever since they could remember. They were inseparable and nothing and no one could break them apart. In their backyard, their fathers' had built them a tree-house which was placed on the biggest tree in the middle of both of their houses. Ever since then, they've been in that tree-house everyday, from dawn until dusk, with each other.
Before Minyoung climbed up the ladder leading up to the treehouse, she let go of Jungkook's hand and said, "Stay right here and cover your eyes. Don't peek!"
Minyoung then continued up the ladder finding the box she had hidden the night before. She walked to the toy box and uncovered the lid revealing a small black ring case. She grabbed it and headed back to where Jungkook was.
Minyoung held out the black box in front of her and yelled "Okay, open your eyes!"
Jungkook immediately opened his eyes and stared at the box first with an excited expression but then turned into a confused gaze. "Are you proposing to me?"
She looked at him with shock, then burst into fits of laughter and fell on the grass. After a good five minutes, she got herself together and stood on her two feet again while Jungkook just looked at her with his wide eyes and mouth open.
"No silly, it's your present. Open it." She held the case back out in front of her for Jungkook to take.
He stared at her, then slowly reached for the box. As he opened the lid, he saw a silver ring. He carefully took it out of the box and observed the ring more closely. The outside of the ring was just simple and plain, but the inside was carved with a 'JK' and 'MY' and in between was a treble clef, which represented both of their love for music.
"Minyoung-ah..." As Jungkook tried to say something, but was completely speechless. He then hugged the mini girl in front of him with all of his seven year-old might. "I love it."
"Happy Birthday, Kookie" Minyoung says with the widest grin and wraps her arms around him.
...
"MinYoung! Come quick, your mother just fell!" Mr. Choi screamed. MinYoung hurriedly ran lightning speed to the kitchen.
"Daddy! What's going on, what happened to mommy?" MinYoung quickly kneeled by her mother and clutched her hand tightly while a tear came down her face.
"I don't know sweetie," he said with a concerned face. He carried Mrs. Choi bridal style and buckled her into the car.
When they arrived at the hospital, both father and daughter were waiting very impatiently outside of the room.
"MinYoung-ah, why don't you go get some food from the cafeteria. I know you haven't ate anything at all today." Mr. Choi says as he hands her some money. Min Young was about to protest, until she heard a sudden grumble coming from her stomach. She sheepishly takes the money from her father and leaves him waiting by himself outside of the room.
After waiting for the diagnosis for a couple of hours, the doctor came out of the room. As soon as he was about to speak, they both turn their heads to see a bunch of men in suits headed towards their . direction. Once they all stop, they clear the way for a short man in his mid 60s to walk through.
"Oh, damn." Mr. Choi mutters under his breath.
"Where is she," the man demands with an assertive tone.
Mr. Choi bows and gets up. "It's been awhile father-in-law."
"I asked where is she. Where is my daughter?" Mr. Jung states, not moving from his position.
"Ah, you must be Mrs. Choi's father. As I was about to tell Mr. Choi, I'm very sorry to tell you both that she has lung cancer. I'm also sorry to say that we caught it at a very late stage." The doctor said in a very calm and slow voice as he has done it many times before.
Mr. Choi collapses on the chair next to him and gasps in disbelief as Mr. Jung is in outrage.
"Well for goodness sakes do something about it!! Don't just stand there do your job doctor! Do you not know who I am? I am Jung Soo Ha, the CEO of SH Entertainment! If what you want is money, I'll give you as much as you want! My daughter is thr only family I have left and I'm not going to let her suffer in there!" Mr. Jung yells, releasing some of his anger and calms down a little bit.
"How..long...does she have left?" Mr. Choi stuttered.
The doctor sighs while putting his pen in his pocket and lifted his face from his clipboard. "She has a couple of months left. There's not much we can do now. I'm very sorry." At that the doctor walks away from the two men who are left in pain.
Mr. Jung looks down at his feet in disappointment then quickly faces up again. "I was right. I shouldn't have left my poor daughter's life in your hands... And to think, I actually thought a half-wit such as you could be a good husband. As I have told everyone around me, you are not capable of taking care of my precious daughter. I've always hated you, and never thought you were good enough for her." He sneered at his son-in-law and walked into his daughter's hospital room.
Mr. Choi watches him walk into the room and close the door silently, then mutters sarcastically, "Well, what do you think the reason we moved to Busan was for? And don't genes play a role in who gets cancer?"
A few seconds later, Minyoung finds her way back to where her father is after being lost for a while. "Daddy, is everything okay?", she asks after seeing her father in a worried state.
He turns to her and forces a smile, "Of course, mommy is doing fine sweetie. The doctor came out and told me everything will be alright," he says, not wanting his daughter to know the actual situation. "Why don't we head home kiddo, I know you must be feeling a little tired"
"But we haven't seen mommy yet. We can't just leave her here!" Minyoung whines with a pout.
"I know sweetie, but the doctors have to take care of mommy right now. They won't want us to be in there while they're helping her. You want her to get better right?" He makes a lie, firstly because he doesn't want her to see the condition that her mother is in right now, and secondly he doesn't want her to meet that so-called grandfather of hers in which his wife and him have been trying so hard to get away from ever since they got married. Minyoung has never known of his existence, and her father intended to keep it that way for as long as he lives.
Minyoung nodded her head wanting for her mother to get better. "I understand, but does that mean that we'll be able to come back later?"
"Of course sweetie." Mr. Choi smiles and feels a pang of guilt in the back of his mind.
...
After visiting the hospital every day for the past couple of months, Minyoung finally came to understand that her mother was dying. Although her father acted as if nothing was wrong, Minyoung knew it was almost time for her mother to go. Even though Minyoung was very young, she knew she had to accept it even if her heart did not want to.
Knowing that Mrs. Choi only had so long of a time left, Mr. Choi decided to go on one last vacation to America with his daughter and wife.
Minyoung was gloomily sitting in the tree-house alone wondering about what it would be like to live in heaven, because she knew her mother would have to go soon. While thinking about things a normal 6 year-old wouldn't be thinking of, she hears a knock on the door of the tree-house.
"Minyoung-ah, are you up there?"
Minyoung crawls over to the door and lifts it up to reveal her best friend.
"What do you want, oppa?" Minyoung says with a slight attitude and a frown. "I don't want to play right now."
Jungkook climbs into the tree-house and finds a seat facing Minyoung. "I know you are feeling sad right now, but I know what will cheer you up." he grins widely at her knowing that his surprise will definitely cheer her up.
Minyoung looks at the boy in front of her with a confused face. "Nothing can cheer me up right now." she says with a sad expression.
"Well lets see about that." He pulls from his pocket a bracelet that he made from string.
"Give me your hand." He ties the bracelet around her wrist that is a little too big for her as tightly as he could.
Minyoung looks at her wrist and observes the bracelet. "Oppa, what is this for?"
Jungkook brushes his right hand behind his neck and looks down sheepishly. "Well I know your birthday is next week, and since you're leaving to go visit America, this is my early birthday present to you. So happy birthday!"
Minyoung looks at him while a smile crept onto her face. "Thank you." She smiles widely at him and gives him a hug.
"This is a friendship bracelet. It's not perfect and has a few spots where I messed up a little, but I will be with you as long as you have that on." He smiles and feels proud of his gift.
After a few moments, Jungkook stands up and walks to take out a video camera that is placed on a shelf inside of their treehouse. He grabs it and returns to Minyoung, who is just staring at her bracelet in the process.
"What are you videoing?" Minyoung questions as she sees Jungkook holding the camera.
Ever since they were babies, their mothers had filmed them from the days they started to walk to their first words to exciting adventures, they had it all.
"Well, since we both have our presents, we should video them! Since we gave them to each other." Jungkook says.
So the two spent the rest of the afternoon showing to the camera what they had received from each other as their birthday gift, and the meanings behind them.
The morning Minyoung had to leave, Jungkook had came to the airport to bid his goodbyes to his bestfriend.
"I'll see you in a few weeks!" Minyoung smiled and patted his head noticing his frown.
"I hope you have fun. And try not to burn anything while you're there." Jungkook joked with a slight smirk. "You better come back and not leave me stranded here alone! I'll miss you!"
"I promise I'll be back. And don't forget to keep practicing your music, you can't be an idol if you don't practice!" She said in an overly dramatic motherly tone.
They hugged for one last time, and then Jungkook watched Minyoung and her family's backs vanish behind the gate.
"Minyoung-ah, wake up your mother, I'm going to get our luggage from the top." Mr. Choi said as the plane had landed.
Minyoung obediently turns to her mother, who's sitting on her right, and shakes her to wake her up.
"Mommy! Wake up, mommy! We're here, Wake up!" Minyoung exclaims, too excited that they're on the other side of the world.
After shaking her mother for what felt like an hour, but was only a couple of seconds, Mrs. Choi still wouldn't wake up.
"Daddy..." Minyoung states in a worried tone.
"Why won't mommy wake up? Is she really that tired?"
Mr. Choi stares at Minyoung, then quickly turns to Mrs. Choi and shakes her himself repeatedly.
"We need help! Someone please help us!" Mr. Choi screams out to the whole plane in worry.
In a few moments flight attendants along with a doctor who was found on the plane as one of the passengers, thankfully, rushed over to where Minyoung and her family was at.
Mr. Choi hurriedly tells the doctor about the state that Mrs. Choi is in as Minyoung just sits next to her mother holding her hand with an almost inexistent look.
"Sir..." The doctor stands up, after checking Mrs. Choi's pulse seeing that there was none. "I'm sorry. Your wife is gone."
When Jung Soo Ha was informed of the situation, he was furious. All he wanted to do now was to take his granddaughter away from her father, and he was willing to do this by any means.
Since he owned the biggest industry within Korea, and one of the biggest entertainment companies in the nation, he had connections everywhere especially in America.
By making a few calls here and there, he had closed down any and every place that Mr. Choi would eventually reach or need, which included banks, hospitals, and many more until his agreement to return to Korea and hand his daughter over to him.
Mr. Choi had refused to return to Korea and decided to continue to run and hide from his father-in-law. He had no intention of letting him have his daughter, even if that meant a rough life from now on. In the back of his mind he wished that things could've turned out differently if only Mrs. Choi was still there. But no matter what his dreams were, they could never become a reality.
He stared at his now 7 year-old sleeping daughter as they were on an old creaky bus in the middle of the night riding to the middle of nowhere. She had no idea what was going on and Mr. Choi, unwilling to let her know what's going on, felt guilty in the back of his mind for putting his poor little girl through this pain and struggle.
For the past three months they had been in a different city almost every night, stayed in broken down hotels, and been on a constant run from anyone who knew Jung Soo Ha.
As Minyoung woke up, she looked out the window of the bus staring into a big field of nothing. She had never asked her father of why they couldn't return back to Korea ,of why she couldn't snuggle back into her warm fluffy bed, why she couldn't go back to her school, and mostly why she couldn't contact Jungkook. She knew that coming to America meant no contact with Jungkook, but she was willingly going along with it firstly, because her mother wanted to come and secondly, because it was only a week (even though that felt too long for her at the time) but three months without talking to Jungkook to her felt like an eternity.
She was always curious of the reason why they were constantly running, but knew that her father was a man who didn't do anything if there wasn't a reason for it. So even if her curiosity got to her, she eventually learned to just bite her tongue and accept what comes at her.
They continued to sit on the bus until they had came to the last bus stop, and the bus driver eventually had to kick them out before he returned to his station.
They got off the bus holding all that they had left with them which was one backpack each filled with a few of their clothes and a couple of snacks. As they looked around, they noticed they were in a small neighborhood, one that looked like they were still in Korea.
Having no plan or thought, all they could do was walk and walk and walk. As they turned around a corner, they saw two men who were in suits, and at the doorstep talking to one of the people inside that house.
"Have you seen this man anywhere?" One guy in a suit had asked the house owner. "He has a daughter with him who looks around seven years-old." The man shook his head and proceeded to close the door.
Minyoung just looked at the scene unfolding in front of her, and looked back at her father who stared intently double taking between the two a couple of times still not understanding what was going on.
After seeing this, Mr. Choi immediately wanted to get as far away from this place as possible, knowing that Jung Soo Ha's men were near. He grabbed Minyoung's hand in his, turned around, and bolted into the opposite direction to who knows where.
As they were walking along another unfamiliar road, Minyoung's father started feeling a little dizzy and walked unevenly. Having no money as well as being deprived from hospitals and hotels, sickness was starting to overcome him. They eventually stopped and sat at one of the tables in front of a coffee shop.
"Daddy, who are those men and why do we keep running?" Minyoung asked no longer able to hide her curiosity.
Minyoung's father sighed and paused for a couple of seconds. "Minyoung-ah, those men work for your grandfather. They want to take you away from me."
"No, I want to stay here with you Daddy." Minyoung says immediately shaking her head.
"If you stay with your grandfather, you get to go to school again, have your own bedroom, and live in a big big house." Mr. Choi says softly with a sad tone. He knew dragging her along with him eventually wasn't going to last, so he decided to let her choose.
"No, I want to stay here with you." She repeated again.
They got up after eating one of their left over snacks and walked down the street they came from again. As they were walking, Minyoung's father felt the dizziness posses him while he swayed from side to side before collapsing on the concrete road. Minyoung dropped to her knees and began violently shaking her father back and forth.
"Daddy! Daddy! Get up!" Minyoung cried. Feeling the pain of losing her mother, she couldn't bare losing her father either.
In the faint distance, they both could see a pair of headlights directed straight towards them. Mr. Choi knew the men had found them.
Minyoung's father held his hand out to his daughter and faintly whispered, "I'm sorry sweetie. I'm sorry. The men in that car will bring you to your grandfather. Go with them safely." He let his hand drop and turned his head.
The car approached closer to them, and Minyoung quickly ran to the house that was closest to them and hid behind the bush. She watched as the two men got out of their car and stood surrounding her still father.
"Sir, we found Mr. Choi. He seems to be unconscious in the middle of the road. Your granddaughter doesn't seem to be anywhere in site. We'll bring him to the hospital." With that they proceeded in carrying Mr. Choi to the back of their car and drove off.
All Minyoung could do now was cry. She cried and cried silently to herself in the bush. She was completely and utterly alone. With no one she knew, in a far country that she didn't even know the language of, and all she could do now was cry to herself.
She stayed still there for what seemed like an eternity. When all of a sudden, a hand was enclosed around her mouth and she was dragged away from her safe bush.