Moonbow - a short novel [Completed]

7. The Conclusion

I open my eyes to a firefly doing a little dance in front of me. Without lifting a finger, I watch, itching to trap it inside my hand. It must have thought I was some kind of object, oblivious to my presence in its orbit. But then we’re both in an oasis. Everything that breathes senses a deep connection to each other, which is why everything I see makes me feel belonged. Even the clouds crawling in the sky indicate that I have found my way back. Four years ago I had wanted to die, but death, especially a forced one, can never be a dignified escape. This place gave me the piece of heaven that my soul had needed and I was never the same again.

I pick up the empty bucket and the fishing rod from the ground. It’s time to see the elders again, and hopefully the courage to see Min-woo will not escape me before I reach the cabin. Someone taps on my shoulder before I can take a step. I turn and see Halmoni and Haraboji standing side by side, both looking a bit older, both smiling at me. Their presence makes every fiber of my being come alive. I bow deeply and hug each one with an uncontrollable urge. My angels in flesh, my immortal guardians.

“What took you so long, child?” Halmoni asks while rubbing her cheeks on mine.

A tear in my eye. I dry it away before I pull back. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t able to get in touch.”

“We’ve waited. I thought you have forgotten us,” Haraboji says. “How was life in New York?”

“It was good.”

“As good as your time with us?” Halmoni asks again.

I shake my head. My heart twitches with that question.

“Are you staying for good?” Haraboji asks. His eyes smile like the first time I saw them.

I nod.

“We’re so happy you’re staying,” Haraboji says. “The night you left, I couldn’t sleep. Min-woo… he came back to the house and learned you were gone. He went back to the road to chase you. It was heartbreaking.”

I remember the night Min-woo and Yoo-jin in my rear mirror. The look he had on his face.

“He has changed since you left. He has become more aggressive and strived to learn. I’m sure it’s because of the influence you had on him,” Halmoni says.

“Hae-na ssi?”

I look over my shoulder. Yoo-jin heads to our direction with an infant in one arm and a feeding bottle in her free hand. My heart stops beating. Life has moved on while I was away. Yoo-jin’s child has a splitting image of Min-woo. I force myself to accept this reality seconds before it blows up in my face. “How are you?” I ask Yoo-jin after a bow.

“Lee Hae-na ssi? It’s really you!” Yoo-jin quickly bows and squeezes her child in her arm. “This is Han-mae. Say hi to auntie.” She holds Han-mae’s wrist and makes a small wave at me. I smile, still guessing when her parents had decided to get together and when she was conceived. The child stares at me with curiosity. Her small eyes follow each movement of my lips. When I coo and smile at her she breaks into a loud shriek and giggles. I can sense she understands the awkwardness between her mother and this stranger, even the short gaps of silence. Her hand wraps around my finger, probably trying to figure out whether it’s edible or not. “How young is Han-mae?” I ask again.

“She just turned two,” Yoo-jin says.

Halmoni offers to carry Han-mae. The little girl squeals as she transfers to the arms of her great grandmother. “Han-mae is well-behaved. She didn’t give her parents a hard time when she was newly born.”

The air almost stops in my throat. I imagine Min-woo and Yoo-jin on their wedding day, dressed in their lavish suit and gown, both looking happy and in love. I must have been working that day, trying to fit in, trying to be the best. For a moment I regret coming back without calling first. Did I actually believe the world would stop and wait for me? These people have their own lives, just as I have decided to get away and live mine. I bring my eyes to the little girl again. Her sun-kissed cheeks look rounder up-close. She has red small lips that pop bubbles from time to time. I gaze into her eyes and imagine my future daughter looking exactly like her. That moment I know for certain my heart is broken forever.