CONGRATULATIONS

Chapter 6: CALIFORNIA

It has been three months since I left South Korea and flew all the way to LA to help my mom. It has also been two months since I last talked with Han.

"Yo Brandon! Wait up!", I clumsily hurried up to where Brandon, my American buddy, was. "Let me help you with that bag of groceries".

"Thanks man!", he replied.

"By the way, were you able to talk to the members already, particularly with Jeonghan?", he asked, while walking slowly with me towards his car outside the parking lot of Walmart.

"Hmm?", I said, looking at the sky with deep thoughts. "Were you saying something?"

"ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT JEONGHAN?!?!?", a voice boomed thru the air.

"You don't have to shout, Brandon". I told him, with my facial expression suddenly changing from –*thinking about someone*- to - *yes i heard you* -.

"So, what's your answer then?".

I looked at Brandon. He knows how much I care for the members, especially Jeonghan. So right now, I know that I cannot tell him a lie.

"Will you drop me off at Mom's office on the way home?", I asked.

"Fine.", he said.. "though you could have just told me that you miss Jeonghan", he said, smirking.

I was dead silent inside the car. I mean, I could hear McKay's song playing through Brandon's car stereo, but my mind was floating somewhere.

All that I'm thinking of right now is the question WHY.

"Why is Jeonghan not answering my calls?"

"Why is Jeonghan ignoring my text messages?"

"Why is Jeonghan not even calling or texting me?"

"WHY????"

I didn't know what to feel. I don't know what to do. The action that I can do right now was to just clench my fists in anger over a matter that I myself wouldn't want to think about, but is continuously running through my head.

Eventually, my frustration was compromised when the car stopped.

"We're here man", I could hear Brandon talking.

I looked outside the red stone brick building with a black and white sign that boldly says "ORIENTAL MEDICINE CLINIC".

Inside the brick building is where my mom works. And this is also where I am spending most of my summer days alone. I help Mom with some of her patients by bringing her the tools and medicines that she needs, and during my free time, I would just watch her doing her "oriental medicine" procedures.

"Thanks man, I need to go now", I told Brandon while closing the car door.

I walked slowly to the entrance of the clinic, with a bag of Cheetos and a brick of my favorite Twix chocolate in hand.

"Hey Josh!", Brandon shouted as he reeled the car window open. "If you REALLY miss him, I think you should go back to South Korea now", he said.

I looked at him, bewildered. He was smiling at me as if he knew what was running through my head. I almost choked up trying to stop what my heart was really feeling at that time.

"Just go home man!", he said, once again. Then he drove off.

I stood in front of the clinic for like about five minutes. Brandon's words were now running inside my head.

"If you miss him, just go back".. it kept replaying in my head.

"JUST GO BACK".. it echoed.

And then I realized that I was sprinting inside the clinic as fast as I can.