Lisa, I’m sorry it took this for us to be
く
10:10
514
“It’s okay. You’re paying me a lot of money.” I
shrugged.
66
99
“Are you allergic to romance?” He said through gritted teeth. “Wait for me after work.”
“Can’t. I’m having Korean BBQ with Sarah.”
“No, you’re not.”
“You’re coming home with me.
“”
(6
…
“”
I was about to sneak out of the office at the
end of the day when Ethan caught me.
“Lisa, where are you going? Just got married
and you’re already leaving me alone at night?”
“It’s just…too much, too fast. I need time.” |
confessed.
It was too fast. And the fact that Ethan was
that little boy with the shaved head… It was a
lot to process.
Who was that boy? I never knew his name. I just
called him “Baldy.” He’d come to our village
with a school group. He kept to himself,
scowling under a tree while the other kids
played. I felt sorry for him and went over to
make friends. It took three roasted sweet
potatoes and an ear of corn to get him to say
his first words to me: “This corn is burnt.”
“Baldy, don’t be ungrateful. I roasted that corn over the furnace for ages.”
He’d laughed, and despite his complaints, he
ate every kernel. Back then, I’d just been moved
from my aunt’s house to my uncle’s. I had no
frianda Tha
ཁཁ[°° °ཁ:|
“the airl
MA
<
friends. The village kids called me “the girl
without a mother” and refused to play with me.
Lonely people gravitate towards each other. That must have been it. I wasn’t sure he’d even
talk to me when I approached him. But he did,
and he became my only friend at my uncle’s.
When it was time for him to leave, he begged his teacher to take a picture of us. I never had a copy. Ethan had kept it all these years.
After Baldy went home, we wrote letters, just
like we promised. Then one day, my uncle sent
me to live with another relative, and we lost
touch.
And now, years later, the boy who’d brought a
little light into my lonely childhood was my
husband.
“How did you know I was that girl?” I asked. He
looked at me as if I were crazy.
<
“Your name, the birthmark on your hand, and
your ridiculous sense of humor. None of it
changed.”
“Why didn’t you keep your head shaved so I
could recognize you right away?” I teased,
enjoying his discomfort.
“No way. It looked awful.” He patted my head,
and the gesture brought me back to that
summer.
“No way. It looked awful.” I’d woven wildflowers
into a crown and placed it on his shaved head.
It was perfectly round, just right for a hat.
He’d made a face. “No way. It looked awful.”
But he wore it anyway, clutching the wilted
crown even on the day he left.
“I’ll give you time, but you can’t just stop
writing back without any explanation again,
okay?”
<
“I won’t. I have a cell phone now.”
After much whining from Sarah, Ethan agreed to let us go for Korean BBQ, on the condition
that I came home afterward.
I grabbed my bag and raced to Sarah’s, eager
to tell her everything. I was living in a real–life
drama!
Sarah listened intently. “That explains it! My
brother randomly asked me if he could meet
you.”
“He did?”
“Of course, I said no. He hadn’t even sorted
things out with his ex, and he wanted to mess
with my best friend? No way. I shut him down.”
“He asked about me before we got married?”
“He did. He asked if you were single. I told him
く
my friend was a fierce protector and once
chased a guy down for five blocks for
scamming me out of money. He didn’t say
anything after that.”
99
Classic Sarah.
“I was surprised you two actually got married. My brother must have used his money to win you over. But you know, I thought about it, and it’s not a bad thing. Ethan’s a bit grumpy, but I know he’s a good guy deep down. At least I don’t have to worry about awkward small talk with my sister–in–law. Marrying him is basically like marrying me. Hey, win–win!”
“He’s not really that grumpy…”
