Prologue

The Present Day

They both stood in front of the judge, ready to part ways. She signed the papers and handed them to him. He looked at her painfully as he took the documents, his hand trembling slightly as he added his own signature.

Just like that, they were not a married couple anymore.

She turned and walked out of the courtroom, making her way straight toward the cab she had ordered. He stood frozen, watching her figure slowly distance itself from him until she turned into a tiny dot and disappeared completely from his sight.

He felt an arm wrap around his shoulders, trying to comfort him. Looking over, he met the eyes of the person standing next to him.

She offered a gentle smile and said, "She didn't leave you. She's still your best friend."

He let out a heavy sigh, hugging her back tightly. "I know," he spoke, his voice cracking. "But I fear that I failed... I failed in keeping the promise I made to her. Forever."

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17 Years Ago

"Yah! Don't run! I won't beat you!"

"No, you will! You always beat me. But not today!"

"Okay, I won't. I promise."

"Pinky promise?"

"Yes, Jin. Pinky promise."

Hearing that, Jin immediately changed direction and ran back toward the girl. She smiled, watching the boy who had just stolen her chocolate bar recklessly stuffing it into his mouth while running. He was almost within her reach when he suddenly tripped over his own feet. He went flying forward, his face meeting the ground hard as the chocolate bar flew off somewhere into the dirt.

Panic replacing her amusement, she rushed over and helped him sit up, instantly getting mad at his sheer carelessness.

"Yah! Didn't I tell you to stop? Why don't you ever listen to me? See? Because of your carelessness, you’ve broken your nose!"

"Ah, why? Can you stop scolding me and help me instead?" he sulked, trying to show her the river of blood flowing from his mouth. "I guess... along with my nose, I broke my tooth too."

"What? Really?" She panicked at the new information, but looking closely at his dramatic, bloody condition, she had to purse her lips tightly to control her laughter.

"Yeah, really! Now help me."

She nodded, helping him stand up. Since his parents weren't home, she carefully led him back to her own house.

"Mumma! Jin broke his nose and his tooth!" she called out the moment they stepped inside.

"Eh? How? Come quick, let me see," her Appa said, setting his newspaper down on the side table.

She helped Jin onto the couch. Appa looked at the boy, then turned to Naomi, his eyebrow arched with a slight, knowing curve forming at the corner of his lips. Naomi just shrugged. "Careless, like always," she answered, sitting down next to Jin.

Just then, her Eomma entered the living room, twisting her hair up into a messy bun.

"What happened, kid—" She stopped dead in her tracks, looking at Jin and then at Naomi. Naomi merely shrugged again, tilting her head toward the wounded boy. "God! What were you doing? You shouldn't be so reckless. Now look what happened..." Her mother kept rambling under her breath as she hurried away to search for the first-aid box.

The little girl and her dad shared a silent laugh. Jin looked utterly confused, but he still tried to join in, letting out a small laugh that was a painful mix of a whimper and a smile.

Mrs. Jang returned with the first-aid kit, a bowl of water, and a clean towel, sitting down directly in front of the boy.

"How did this happen?" she asked gently.

"He stole my chocolate bar and was running around," Naomi answered, heavily emphasizing her words. "I tried to chase him, but he was too fast, so I stopped and promised that I wouldn't beat him. But when he started running back toward me, he tripped over his own legs and... *this* happened."

Her mother sighed deeply, carefully nursing the little boy's wounds. Once she finished cleaning him up, Mrs. Jang spoke, "Be careful from now on, and just rest for a bit."

The little boy looked up at his best friend, a desperate, pleading look in his eyes. The girl just shook her head, innocence shining in her eyes even as a mischievous pout formed on her face. Jin whined in pain, but he didn't protest as she held his arm, gently guiding him back toward her bedroom.

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