D E D I C A T I O N

for you who endured the weight

of the world on your shoulders,

whose dreams were long forgotten,

whose tears had all dried up,

who had to mature far too quickly,

who had nowhere to go to,

too busy or too lonely or too broken,

to find this world beautiful,

to find people beautiful.

E P I G R A P H

  "The loneliest moment in someone's life is when they are watching their whole world fall apart, and all they can do is stare blankly." 

―   F. Scott Fitzgerald

  "So many people are shut up tight inside themselves like boxes, yet they would open up, unfolding quite wonderfully, if only you were interested in them."  

― Sylvia Path 

  "I'm pretty lost in becoming all this frost. Bitter, like Winter. Strung-out like a string of pearls."

― Ashly Lorenzana   

W A R N I N G S

- Contains neglection, physical and sexual abuse. I wouldn't go into detail about such scenes but if it still makes you uncomfortable, you can just skip it. Or read the story with caution.

P L A Y L I S T 

After the Wreckage || SALTNPAPER

Paul || HYUKOH

A Little Bit More || Sweden Laundry

Grown Ups || Sondia

Please || Sweden Laundry

Satellite || SALTNPAPER

Ohio || Hyukoh

Go || SALTNPAPER

Wish || Sweden Laundry

Bad Day || IU

Mer || HYUKOH

N O T E

If you want to listen to the playlist as you read, I created a Spotify playlist for this. Just click on the external link button. 

All the artists are Korean but some of the songs are in English. If Korean music is not your cup of tea, you can just not listen to it but I really do hope you'll give these songs a try. If you look up the lyrics, these are songs that fit the mood and the story of the book very well. And also, most of these are my favorite.

This is YA fiction set in the bustling city of Seoul, South Korea. So there's a difference in culture. Also, I will be using some words in Korean for reasons that there might be no English equivalent or its equivalent doesn't fit quite well with the context. There's a glossary where you can check the meaning of the words I used. And how the words can be used.

The first draft was written in First Person Point-of-View but I decided to change it to Third Person right before I published it. I found First Person POV so difficult that I struggled writing the second chapter. English is not my first language and even though I edit a lot, I may still have missed a ton so if you spot some errors, please let me know. I am always willing to improve. I would be very thankful if you'll leave some comments or feedback. 

I hope you'll give this book a try and if you will, I hope will see each other in the end. 

Thank you so much!

Rie