EXAMPLE PAGE - EBOOK - TEA GODS - Flipbook - Seite 59
the promise of the tea-gods
49
it felt so good to just go with it. And so he did—for a while. He let go
of his remorse for a few minutes, fended off the incessant drum-sound
in his head and, for a moment, he pushed away the threat of an empty
tomorrow. But as they headed back the way they had come, it all rushed
back in.
Walking beside her along the water’s edge, he tried his best not to
let it show . . . She laughed. His weeping heart laughed with her while
clinging to the sound of bells. She gracefully picked up a shell. His sad
eyes smiled. Desperately praying for an everlasting day of her by his
side, he swung from a fraying rope—knowing the end would surely
come, but not at all prepared for it when it did.
Suddenly her feet left the swirling sea-foam and crossed the sand,
stopping in front of the old wooden stairs that went up the steepest part
of the hill—about a mile from the beach house. Still beside her, Sookang took a deep breath and braced himself for what he knew was coming. Not yet, his heart whispered, closing its eyes. Please, please . . . not
yet.
K touched his arm. “I have to go now,” she said softly. “If Binnie
asks, please tell him I’ve gone to meet a friend.” Giving him a warm
smile and a respectful bow, she started climbing the wooden steps—
then paused and turned to him, adding, “Thank you for walking beside
me for a while. You made the day more beautiful.” Then she turned
around and continued climbing.
Soo-kang watched her until the stairs disappeared into a cathedral of
swaying branches and leaves . . . Feeling as if he’d just fallen off the
moon and crashed onto a barren shore of unanswered prayers, his heart
sank into the sand.
Temma was waiting for K at the top of the stairs. “Who was down there
with you?” she asked.
“The singer, Kim Soo-kang.”
“Are you kidding me? The guy who deleted you? That must have
been one heck of an interesting conversation.”
“He’s a good person—incredibly intense, but a really good person.”
