Chapter 1
In a small town far from Seoul, there was a group of friends. They were James, Jake, Jay, Ni-Ki, and Evan. Since it was a small town, everyone knew them because they were such troublemakers, always ruining other people’s lives.
One day, after playing a prank on their neighbors, they were laughing and walking through town when they saw a moving truck and a girl. When they saw the girl, they were mesmerized. But… Evan felt something different; his heart was beating faster. The girl’s presence was radiant.
The next day, they were walking in the woods when they saw the girl by the river. They walked toward her, and she turned and looked at them. She was glowing in the moonlight.
“Hi, I’m Chloe,” she said, smiling.
Evan was the first to respond.
“I’m Evan.”
His eyes sparkled when he saw her smile.
Then they introduced themselves.
She nodded and just stared at them.
They talked and became friends. But Chloe was closer to Evan and Jake. They kept teasing people, and Chloe noticed. One day she asked them all about it.
“Why do you tease other people?” she asked.
They didn’t know what to say; according to them, it wasn’t teasing.
“I was jealous of what they had, and besides, it wasn’t bothering anyone,” Evan defended himself.
“Jealous? Why? You should be grateful for what you have,” she replied.
From that day on, they changed. They went from being troublemakers to being kind.
Every day, Evan went to the river to give thanks for everything he had, including Chloe.
One day, when Evan was by the lake, he heard footsteps, and it turned out to be Chloe. They sat down, talked, and after thinking it over carefully, Evan confessed his feelings to Chloe. She confessed hers, too. That means they both love each other, but…
There was a VERY SERIOUS problem…
Chloe had to leave for Australia in five days because of her father’s job, so they decided to make the most of those days and then maintain a long-distance relationship. Before leaving, Chloe said:
“I’ll never leave you…”
A few years later, Chloe lost touch with Evan and fell in love with someone else, Jay. They became a couple. One day, Evan decided to visit Australia to surprise Chloe. When he saw them from a distance, his heart broke. He saw her smiling as she held Jay’s hand, just as she had once held his.
“He felt as if everything he had learned to be grateful for had shattered in an instant.”
Because some people come into our lives full of magic and leave us with stronger hearts that know how to be grateful.
Because sometimes being grateful for what we have is better than wanting more, even if it hurts.
THE END
