"Okay, I understand. I'll be there, thank you," then he hung up.
"Rina, let's-"
The little girl was nowhere in sight.
"Rina? Where are you? RINA???" San yelled, falling into full panic mode. He scrambled to look for her, asking the people around if they'd seen where she went.
"I saw a kid with pigtails run in that direction," a stranger pointed out.
"Yes yes that should be her thank you so much!" He bowed to the stranger and dashed down the footpath.
Those 5 minutes of helplessness and fear of not knowing where his daughter could be was the most heart-stopping few minutes San had ever experienced. He stopped in his tracks when he heard a familiar cry.
Standing on a small flight of stairs up to the mall was little Rina, toy in one hand, the other rubbing her eyes. There was a man crouching in front of her, he had a look of concern on his face.
"Rina!" San called out, rushing to the girl and picking her up. He gently stroked the back of her head, apologizing for not paying attention to her.
"Is this your daughter?" A deep but soft voice came from behind him. He turned around and was met with a familiar face.
It was the guy at the bakery! Not that his face was of any significance, it was just nice to recognise someone he'd talked to.
"Oh it's you. Yes, Rina is my daughter. I'm sorry if we caused you inconvenience."
"No it's alright. Glad you found her. I'll be on my way."
The man left before San could say thank you. The conversation was so brief, did he not recognise them?
"Sorry appa. I won't do that again," Rina sobbed, holding San tightly, "the bakery lady was trying to help me."
Lady?
"Oh Rina, he's a man, not a woman."
"But he looks like a lady," she insisted.
"He does, but we don't know for sure yeah? Now let's go home."
He didn't think much about what Rina said. The guy just had slightly long hair and pretty female-like facial features, that's all. His voice said otherwise. Still, a part of him wished they'd talked a bit more.
Working at the fruit market, he was mostly surrounded by older folks, which he was used to, for back in Namhae, most of the farmers he interacted with were in their 60s/70s. This, along with the responsibility of having to care for Rina, meant that he didn't much time to make friends of his age. Most of them lived in the countryside.
He had no friends in the city.
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One Day At A Time | sansang
Fanfiction[COMPLETED] San is a single dad who just moved to the city with his young daughter to start afresh. He struggles with the anxiety of having to live in a fast-paced society, until he meets Yeosang, a kind gentleman who always showed up at the right t...
