тaĸe мy нandѕ now | jjĸ

My Person | pt. 1

"Here are your rice cakes Ms. Lee," Eunji bowed cordially as she handed the lady the box of fresh rice cakes. It was wrapped with a delicate cloth that had elaborate floral designs on it.

Ms. Lee smiled at the young girl and took the box, "Thank you, dear. How fortunate you are with your youthful beauty. Have you married yet?"

Every older woman that came into her shop asked the same question. She gave the same answer every time it was asked.

"Thank you, Ms. Lee. And no, I have yet to marry," Eunji smiled, humbly bowing her head.

Ms. Lee patted the girl's hand, "Well a beautiful girl like you shouldn't have a hard time finding a man. Choose wisely, dear."

"You're too kind but thank you," Eunji said, feeling her cheeks heat up at the compliment. The woman patted the girl one last time before taking her to leave.

"Enjoy your rice cakes!" Eunji called out after her. The woman turned her head and smiled kindly.

Once the lady left, Eunji went behind the curtains to enter the back room. There she returned to her previous work before Ms. Lee's arrival. Picking up her wooden pestle, she continued pounding the rice grains into its mortar. After vigorously pounding the rice for a good amount of time, she pauses to give her muscles a break. She couldn't help but laugh, thinking back to what Ms. Lee had told her.

It wasn't anything new to Eunji. "Beautiful," "pretty," and sometimes even "radiant" were words thrown around since the day she was born. In the capital, she was infamous for her beauty.

Her parents held a high status considering that she lived in the capital. Her father was the captain guard for the late king of Goguryeo, while her mother ran a popular rice cake shop in the capital. They must've been so proud to have such a beautiful daughter.

Unfortunately, Eunji's father died when she was ten. There had been an assassin who attempted to kill the great king late into the night. Her father so happened to be on his shift when he gave up his life to protect his king. Eunji's mother had been so heartbroken after his death. She stopped working, which left Eunji to start running the shop on her own. No matter how Eunji tried, her mother refused to eat or drink. Instead, she sobbed endlessly in the nights crying out for her husband to come back home. It wasn't long for when she too left the world, leaving the eleven-year-old child to grieve alone.

The pain of losing both her parents took a toll on the child. Yet, she stayed up on her feet and it took it upon herself to take over her mother's infamous rice cake shop. The rumors were bad enough about how her mother turned into the village crazy lady and how her father didn't protect the King properly. She would not bring anymore shame to her family's name by losing herself too.

Eunji was eighteen now, still working faithfully for her family's sake. Everyone in the capital knew her story. Some sympathized with her while others looked down on her. Why was a young girl without parents living in the capital? Why hasn't she married yet? Eunji learned to grow a tough skin and ignore it all. As time passed, the rumors did die down but they were still present. Yet the false words didn't stop the people from purchasing her rice cakes, for they were the best in the capital. People could never get enough of her treats.

The sound of chimes ringing interrupted Eunji from her work. Sighing, she dusted her hands on her apron and walked into the main room of the shop. She wasn't the slightest bit surprised when she saw the new customer in her shop.

"Eunji-yah!" The girl's voice sang as she entered the shop.

A smile stretched on Eunji's lips, "Annyeong Soo-young-ah."

Park Soo-young has been Eunji's best friend ever since they were children. Despite the heavyweight that Eunji carried on her shoulders, her friendship with Soo-young found its way to lighten the load. It was comforting to have at least one person who was loyally by her side.