Her senses were bombarded the moment they stepped into his house. 

His house was huge, and the way they'd rearranged the furniture made the space look like a ballroom. It was dimly lit, and there were clusters of people, eating, talking, dancing. 

His friends cheered when they entered the room. 

"It's the birthday boy!" Johnny yelled, clapping his hands wildly. 

Johnny was one of Mark's friends that she recognized, and felt comfortable around, and she couldn't help smiling when she saw him there. 

Mark smiled at his friends but kept walking, his pace never slowing. 

"Let's get your present," he whispered to her. "And then we can join them." 

"Why don't you just give it to me after the party?" she whispered back to him. 

"Because you need it now," he told her. 

Sunhee glanced at him curiously. "What could I possibly need now?" 

"You'll know if you just be quiet and follow me," Mark joked, leading her upstairs and to his room. She followed him, away from the sound of music and into a little haven of quiet. 

"Close your eyes," he said, closing the door behind them. 

"Why?" she asked, laughing as she set down the gift bag on his bed. He was surely making a big deal out of this. But she did as told, closing her eyes and wondering what he could possibly be giving her. 

His fingers brushed against her neck, and she shivered, feeling something cold touch her skin. A necklace. That was the present. 

"You can open your eyes now!" he said proudly. 

Sunhee opened her eyes and looked down at the necklace he'd given her. "It's so pretty," she sighed, her eyes widening as she took in all the intricate details of it. "But you really didn't have to do this," she told him, looking back up. 

He ruffled her hair affectionately. "I just wanted to make sure you'd outshine all the other girls here, more than you already do, of course." 

She laughed, shaking her head at him. "You're ridiculous," she told him, laying her fingers against the necklace. She felt herself blushing, and prayed he wouldn't notice. 

If he did, he didn't let on. He simply held out his arm for her. "Let's go?" 

Sunhee nodded, taking his arm and following him back downstairs. 

They were halfway down when she realized she'd forgotten her purse. She'd put it inside of the gift bag while they were in the car, and had been planning to take it out before giving him his present. But now it was in his room, his gift and her purse. 

"Just a minute," she whispered, extracting her arm. "I forgot something. I'll be right back, okay?" She told him, not waiting for an answer as she sprinted back up the stairs. 

Sunhee opened the door quickly, and heard a pained sound from the other side. She peeked into Mark's room, seeing a boy her age rubbing his forehead. 

The boy glared at her. "What are you doing in here? Shouldn't you be downstairs?" 

"I forgot my purse," she explained, heading over to Mark's bed and taking it out of the gift bag before turning back to the boy. "But what are you doing in here?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him. Her gaze drifted down to his arms, which were holding a pile of Mark's clothes. "And what are you doing with his Mark's clothes?" 

"I'm stealing them," the boy said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "I'm going to go wash them, you idiot." 

"You're not one of the guests?" 

The boy sighed. "If I was one of the guests, would I be doing his laundry? I work here, okay?" His brows creased as he looked her up and down. "Aren't you Mark's date?" 

She felt her face turn red. Mark's date. If only. 

"I came with him, but we're just friends," she said softly, casting her eyes to the floor. 

"But you like him, don't you?" 

Sunhee's head shot back up, and she looked at him in surprise. "Excuse me?" 

"Even your reaction gives you away," he told her, laughing. "I can tell you like him. From the moment I saw you guys walk in... it was obvious. I mean, the way you look at him, smile at him, get flustered when you hear his name," he said, raising his eyebrows. "It's obvious." 

She raised her hands to her face, trying to cool herself off. "Do you think he knows?" 

The boy rolled his eyes. "Are you kidding? How long have you been friends with him?" 

"Since we were babies..." 

"Then you should know by now that men are completely oblivious." 

Sunhee couldn't help laughing at that. "Okay," she said, relieved. "Thanks. I'll try to be less obvious," she said, laughing at herself.  

"I should get back to the party..." she said awkwardly. Here she was partying, while a boy her age had to do Mark's laundry. 

It could have been her. 

When Mark's parents got rich and moved, they kept in touch, but they changed. It was to be expected, no one stays the same forever. 

And then her family fell into hard times. And his parents offered her a job. As their maid. 

It wasn't the idea of being a maid that angered her, there was nothing wrong with that. But to be theirs. To work for the people she'd been friends with for so long... she hadn't been able to bring herself to do it. It would have been too uncomfortable. 

Mark never knew about the job offer. And he was someone who hardly changed. He had, but not drastically. He was still the sweet boy that had captured her heart so many years ago. 

"You should," the boy said after an awkward moment, stopping her train of thought. "Mark's probably missing you."

She couldn't quite tell if he was joking or not. 

"Well it's nice to meet you..." 

"Kevin." 

"It's nice to meet you, Kevin," she said, smiling at him. "I'm Sunhee." 

***

A/N 

I really want to start doing weekly updates for this book... 

But I don't have enough chapters ready yet☹️ And with homework and college applications... AHH. 

S T R E S S 

We'll see if I end up writing enough to start weekly updates. 

Anyways, are you guys liking it so far?