The Gift

Past and Future

A few hours later, Jeong-hyeok knocked on the door of his mother's hotel room. He heard movement and then her voice, cautiously asking who was there.

"It's me mother."

She opened the door and let him in. She looked very pleased to see him.

"How are you feeling now?" he asked. "Did you sleep well?" He put his arm about her shoulders and they went to sit down together on a pretty sofa by the window. Unlike the suite he was sharing with Seri, the hotel room was much smaller, but it was still comfortable.

"Much better now, thank you. It was so stressful the last few days. Worrying about what to bring. Worrying about being stopped. Not being able to find you. It feels so much easier now I'm with you."

He smiled reassuringly at her. He didn't want her to have any more worry and stress; she'd had a lot to deal with over the past year. And now, she had taken this huge step.

"You've been so brave. But you're here with me now and I can take care of you. I won't let you down."

She smiled at him, "I know you won't," she said. "Your father knew I'd be able to depend on you too."

That moved him. His father hadn't spoken frankly to him very often, and he wasn't one to offer praise; it was good to know that he had trusted him.

"I wish you could have shared some of this with me after father died. I feel terrible that I've caused you this trouble."

"I didn't want to make things more difficult for you. I knew you would want to be with Seri, but I knew you might feel guilty if you were to ask me to leave. This way neither of us has a choice. You're my son, I must do what I can."

He took her hand. "Thank you mother. And father. He did so much to protect me and I didn't realise." He had so much to feel grateful for. For the love and protection his parents had shown him and the wonderful opportunity to be with Seri. It felt quite overwhelming.

His mother patted him on the hand sympathetically.

"He found it hard to show his feelings, but he did love you. After Mu died we couldn't bear anything to happen to you too."

"I wish I could have thanked him properly before he died." That sense of responsibility and self-criticism came back to him again. He should have done more.

Again, his mother seemed to see what he was feeling. She squeezed his hand reassuringly.

"You've been a good son Jeong-hyeok. There's no reason for you to feel guilty." He nodded in response to her words, but he didn't fully brush away the feeling. He felt relieved when Kim Yoon-he decided it was time to change the subject onto happier matters.

"Now, before we go back to your room, tell me, are you and Seri going to marry? You are aren't you? I do want you to be happy."

His mood lightened as soon as he thought about their wedding plans. "Yes, yes we are," he said. "We are starting to plan, so come to the suite and we can tell you about it."

Kim Yoon-he smiled broadly. "Good, I'm so pleased. It's the right thing to do. As soon as I knew I had to come here, it's what I hoped would happen. I think Seri is the right woman for you, and I know you will make each other happy. I knew as soon as I saw you together all those years ago." She leant across to kiss him on the cheek.

"Before we go I have something for you. I brought it with me. Something that I hoped you'd want." She stood up and walked across the room to open her handbag. She drew a small item out of it and came back to sit with her son.

"Here," she said handing him a tiny cloth package. Mystified, he unwrapped it to find a ring with a large emerald. He looked up at his mother, surprised and delighted, and saw her looking very pleased with herself. "It would be lovely to see Seri wear it," she said.