EXAMPLE PAGE - EBOOK - TEA GODS - Flipbook - Seite 44
34
H. K. O'HARA
“Soo-kang,” she said, her voice flowing through him like liquid-silk,
“I woke up this morning in a mostly-made-of-glass house—a poignant
reminder for me to never throw stones. At anyone. Ever. Or the house
will break.”
Surprised to hear her say his name, he gave her a questioning look.
“So you do know who I am?”
Her smile launched itself into his soul. “Of course I know who you
are! I’d probably be arrested by the K-pop police and get thrown into
the nearest detention center if I met Kim Soo-kang on the beach and
didn’t recognize him. Not a place I’m anxious to visit, by the way—I
hear the food is awful and the free rooms are dark and dreary.”
Soo-kang couldn’t help but laugh. She was as human as she was divine. A beautiful blend of Heaven and Earth . . . How I wish I had done
things differently, he thought. She might not throw stones, but she most
definitely will never agree to meet me again, so I need to make the most
of this first-last meeting and do my best to redeem myself—if that is
even remotely possible.
He looked into her eyes. “I owe you an apology,” he said. “I’m really
sorry I deleted the card you sent . . . and you.”
“You don’t owe me anything.”
“Yes, I do. And I truly am sorry. That someone might be hurt by my
actions, didn’t even cross my mind. Please forgive me.”
Her peacefulness encircled him. “I appreciate your words, Soo-kang,
but there’s nothing to forgive.”
He had bounced from bedazzlement to speechlessness to guilt to
laughter to sincerity, in less than two minutes—now, he teetered on the
edge of confusion.
“How could there be nothing to forgive?” he asked. “That was a ridiculous thing for me to do.”
“People do ridiculous things all the time—it’s part of being human.”
“Well, that may be true, but I still need to apologize.”
“No apology is necessary . . . They are hard for me to hold. Sharp.
So many pieces. I never quite know what to do with them.” She smiled
again. “So let’s just let it go.”