That One Moment

Chapter One

Chapter One

TWO WEEKS LATER

Dong Jin-ho strode through the hospital, scanning the hallway ahead for room 227. He had been here countless times in the two weeks that had passed since that terrible night. The smell of antiseptic now bothered him and he wasn't very fond of Ye-rim's doctor, but he was toughing it out, even if only for the sake of an eighteen year old girl who had been stabbed at her own concert. The wound had been deep and the hospital had kept her there under observation to make sure none of her internal organs had been damaged.

  Jin-ho couldn't wait for this entire ordeal to be over. The police had been searching, but there was no trace of anyone who had been part of what happened that night. "In other words," the doctor, a tall, thin woman named Park Shi-nam, had said, when he'd asked her, "if, for some reason, there is someone seeking to take her life, she is still in danger. I would not recommend sending her home, not even as she recovers."

  "What about my home?" he'd questioned. "My wife and I would take good care of her and we have a spare bedroom."

  The doctor shook her head, pushing her glasses up her nose. "I'm afraid that wouldn't work. Miss Kim is one of the most well-known idols in South Korea. Placing her somewhere anti-fans, or even fans, would expect could be dangerous, not only for her, but for you as well. The whole label could be at risk here." She gave him a look that said their options were limited. "I have spoken with several officers and each of them agree it is best for Miss Kim to stay under the radar."

  He waited for her to continue, but she never did. "Meaning . . .?"

  Shi-nam sighed impatiently. "Meaning it would be best if she stayed somewhere no one would expect. We've spoken with her parents and they told us of some distant relatives living in small city about seventy miles from Seoul. Those relatives agreed to allow Ye-rim to stay with them for a few months until the police locate those who are a threat to the girl's life."

  Jin-ho's brown eyes widened. "What makes you think she is any safer there than she is at her own home? Do you not kn-"

  "I'm aware." She clasped her hands together on her knees. "But there, she will not be Kim Ye-rim. She will be an average girl no one knows. She will attend school just like everyone else, and she will live a simple, understated life, one she must adjust to quickly."

  He seemed at a loss for words. "W-Well . . . How . . . What did she think of this?"

  "She knows very little about what is going on, but she's aware she will need to stay with some distant relatives for a while. She is being released from the hospital today. Please don't worry. Everything should be fine."

~ * ~ * ~

Leaning her head against the window, Kim Ye-rim watched as cars rushed by. The city was hours behind her now and the unfamiliarity of this new, run-down-looking town left her with a feeling of unsettling dread in the pit of her stomach. She didn't want to be here. She wanted her life back -- the one where she was safe and happy and, oh yeah, actually Kim Ye-rim.

  But no. Instead, she was Bang Mi-yung, a girl with long, wavy hair instead the the short, curly locks she used to have. She was now dressed more on the casual side and she couldn't even recognize her own reflection. She couldn't wait for this to be over.

  On the bright side, her wound, although still in the process of healing, was doing much better and she hadn't been seriously injured overall. The doctor had said she'd be fine as long as she rested and didn't strain herself too much.

  "Now, we know you haven't met these cousins of yours, Ye-rim," her mother began, "but they are very nice. In fact, the younger of the two, Woo-kyung, is even your age. I think you two will get along very well."