ɪ'ʟʟ ʙᴇ ʏᴏᴜʀ ʜᴏᴍᴇ ➻〚𝙣𝙘𝙩 𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢 𝙤𝙩7〛

Flashback: The First Meeting

Mark's POV-Age: 7

"Mom, I don't want to go to the park today," I whine to my mom, pouting in frustration. I swipe my hand away from her delicate hold, crossing my arms, not fooling around. All I want is to stay home and read more. I'm in the middle of Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone, and I'll be left on a cliffhanger if I have to stop reading now.

"Sweetie, it'll be good for you. You need to get exercise, and it's a good time to practice your Korean a bit more," Mom explains to me in English, despite wanting me to communicate in more Korean, though I'm practically fluent, "You can make some new friends, too."

I frown, considering her words for a bit. I guess I don't have many friends, and I spend most of my free time reading or playing outside with my father, who is going to the grocery store at the moment. Mom's right, I could make some friends, which I would like because I sometimes get bored on my own.

"But what if there are no other seven-year-olds?" I huff, wanting to only meet kids of my age. I walk over to my toy bin in the corner of the room, which I dive into, picking out a frisbee and a ball to bring to the park, conceding to Mom's orders.

"Then you'll make friends with other kids. It's as simple as that, Markie. You can have friends that are younger or older than you. Plus, if you become friends with younger boys, they will be like little brothers to you, and I know you've always wanted brothers," she coos mushily, bending down to kiss my cheek, which I try to reject. I don't like anyone kissing my cheek.

I've always wanted little brothers so I can have someone to play with and maybe boss around a little bit. I've asked Mom and Dad before, but they've just laughed sadly. It almost seems as though they want more kids too, but something tells me that it's not going to happen. But Mom gave me hope. If I do make more friends, they can be like brothers to me!

My mom holds our hands together, and with my ball and frisbee under my free arm, she leads me out of our comfortable apartment where I had seldom left from since I moved to Korea three years ago.

Hopping into the elevators, my mood changed from annoyed to excited, I press the button for the ground floor and skip around in the elevator until it comes to a stop. Skipping out, my mother chuckles, shaking her head in disbelief at me.

"Why are you shaking your head, Mom? What did I do this time?" I whine, grabbing the bottom of her cotton blouse.

"Nothing. Kids are just so silly," she exclaims as we walk out of the building, the bright sun hitting my face. Its warmth soaks into me, spreading through me. I sigh happily, running along the pavement, the directions to the park etched in my memory.

We reach the park, the greenest place in the city, with never-ending fields of grass and ginormous trees. I set my eyes on a playground in the distance, and I run over energetically to it, my mother lagging behind because she's walking, ready to get on one of the swings. I set my frisbee and ball a few feet away from me, and climb onto one of the normal swings, not the ones for little kids with the safety straps.

"Do you want a push, Markie?" Mom asks sweetly, appearing next to me, putting her hand on my back.

"No! I can do it by myself, Mom," I reply sternly. I'm old enough to do it myself, so I don't need my mother's help.

"Okay, okay. No need to get annoyed, Mark," she replies, chuckling at me again while ruffling my hair, "But that's my grown-up boy. Gosh, you're really growing up too fast. I'll be sitting on that bench over there, next to the slide, if you need me...Have fun!" Mom walks towards the bench, sitting down leisurely, opening up a thick, chapter book to read.