Page 55 of Save Me

I finally release Kennedy’s waist but take her hand to lead her out of the room and up to the rooftop of the building.

“Where are we going?” she inquires.

My curious little warrior.

“Is there another exhibit up here?” she asks doubtfully.

“Something like that.”

We make it to the roof, and I push the door open to reveal a massive tent with blankets, pillows, sheets, and lights.

“What’s this?”

I lead her by the hand to the tent. Once we’re seated, I check my watch.

“We have a few minutes.”

“For what?”

“The show,” I say. I grab the bowl of popcorn and other snacks that were left in the tent and pass it to her.

“When I first moved to the U.S., I lived in New York for six months,” I tell her. “While serving out my military service back home, I met my cousin, Taehyun, for the first time. We became close, and his parents had connections in the city.

“I stayed for a while before moving to Williamsport to work in the family business. While there, I learned that the rooftops are just as good as back home.”

I feel her eyes on me, steadying me. Slowly, I turn to her. There’s so much interest in the brown pools.

“Do you still think of Korea as home?”

“Always,” I answer quickly. “It’s where I grew up, my first language, the home of my mother.” A slight pain moves through my chest. The same pain that occurs whenever I think about her.

Kennedy tilts her head sideways, observing me.

I frown. “What?”

“That look in your eyes. They just got sad. Why? Is it because you miss your home?”

I shake my head. “I don’t want to move back to Korea. Williamsport is my home now.”

What I don’t say, though, is wherever she is is my home.

I grapple with how much to reveal. I don’t want her to see the weak-willed Dae she found in that alleyway ten years ago. The boy I worked for years to leave behind to be the man she deserves to have by her side.

She doesn’t remember him. I want to keep it that way. However, I’ll never forget him.

“You promised,” she says softly.

The promise I made downstairs. To always be upfront and truthful with her.

“I was thinking about my mother,” I finally say. I let out a laugh that lacks humor. “It’s strange.”

“Not strange,” she replies. “Thinking about home makes you think about her. It’s the most natural thing in the world.”

I shake my head. “Not just that. She’s been gone for almost thirteen years. I can still feel her absence sometimes. The truth is, she wasn’t a warm person, either.

“She loved me. I know that. She showed her love by insisting I get the best grades, study for hours, look as presentable as possible.”

“She wanted the best for you,” Kennedy adds, easily. “You said she was a single parent?”

---