Everyone knew about it. No one liked it. It was an eye-sore, as most would call it. How long had it been there? Many people couldn't remember. Fifteen years? Twenty? Why was it even there? Shouldn't such an ugly thing be cut down and replaced with something more appealing?

Walking along the sidewalk on an average evening, an ordinary man was simply on his way home after a busy day at work. Despite how tired he was, he still looked very professional in his black suit and tie, briefcase in his hand. This man was Min Yoongi, a hard-working businessman in one of Seoul's largest companies. He was so dedicated to his job and family, in fact, that he failed to have much of a social life.

While other men his age would take a calm evening like this and turn it into a trip to the bar with friends, Yoongi was looking forward to going home and having a nice dinner with his wife, if she was still awake at this time. She might have already gone to bed, considering how late it was.

On his way home, Yoongi would always pass a path that led to a more deserted spot. Many people passed there daily, but no one stuck around. It was the home of the ugly tree, as it was known. Truly ugly, that thing was a monstrosity, large and twisted. Yoongi often found himself wanting to get closer to the bizarre tree, perhaps out of curiosity of its ugliness.

Giving in to his curiosity for once, Yoongi made his way along the path to reach the ugly tree. His wife wouldn't get upset with him for being just a little later than usual today, would she? As he approached the ugly tree, Yoongi was certainly in awe of its size. Such a giant tree. Its size and displeasing sight would lead anyone unfamiliar with it to believe that it had been planted a hundred years ago.

Yoongi reached out his empty hand and lightly touched the bark of the ugly tree, feeling how dry it was. With a sigh, he wondered if the tree was even still alive. It almost made him sad. This tree was ugly and deformed, not like other trees. It was planted in this spot on its own, no other trees around it. Now here he was, feeling like a sappy fool because he felt sorry for a tree. His thoughts were torn away from the tree though when he heard the giggle of a child. Glancing around, Yoongi didn't see anyone, but he heard the giggle again, prompting his gaze to be lifted.

Up in the thick, twisted branches of the tree was a child, possibly around the age of nine or ten."Hi, Mister!" the child greeted cheerfully.

Looking up at the boy, Yoongi was a little taken aback. What was a child doing out at this time? It was late and dark, save for the streetlights."Hello." he greeted the child in return."What are you doing out here so late? Won't your parents worry?"

The child simply grinned."Nah. They know where I am." Climbing to a different branch, the boy looked down at the businessman and seemed to grow so happy."I'm Hoseok." he introduced himself.

"My name's Yoongi." Keeping his gaze locked on the child, Yoongi felt a little uneasy."Don't you know that you shouldn't give out your name to strangers?" Had the boy's parents not taught him that?

"But we're not strangers anymore now, Mr. Yoongi." Hoseok seated himself on a thick branch and started swinging his legs carelessly."Besides, no one ever talks to me. Everyone ignores me when I say hi to them. But you're talking to me!"

Yoongi cocked his head a little to the side as he kept his gaze on the child."What about your friends? I'm sure they talk to you plenty."

Hoseok shook his head."Nope. I don't have any friends." That didn't seem to sadden him though."But that's okay! You can be my friend, Mr. Yoongi! You'll be my friend, won't you?!"

"Sure." Yoongi saw no harm in telling Hoseok that he would be his friend. He knew how lonely it could be to have no friends, as he had gone through that as a kid as well."You really should go home though. It's late. I need to head home as well."

"You have family at home?" Hoseok asked curiously.

"I do." Yoongi smiled as he thought about his wife."I have a wife."

A giggle slipped out from Hoseok."I bet she's super pretty."

"She is." Giving Hoseok a small wave, Yoongi smiled."Make sure you return home soon, Hoseok."

"Will you come back tomorrow?" Hoseok scooted along the branch until he reached the trunk, leaning against it."Please?"

Yoongi gave a nod."Sure." Making this small stop to talk to a lonely kid wouldn't be so bad. With the agreement to meet again tomorrow, Yoongi left to make his way home.

---

As he had given his word, Yoongi found himself walking to the ugly tree again the next evening. He'd needed to explain to his wife last night that he had gotten distracted on his way home by a child and agreed to be his friend. His wife had giggled and proclaimed that she always knew Yoongi was a sweetheart and good with kids. Of course, that had brought up the topic of someday having children of their own, but it had only been discussed a little.

Approaching the ugly tree, Yoongi looked up among the branches, quickly spotting Hoseok this time."Hello there, Hoseok." he greeted to get the boy's attention.

Hoseok's eyes lit up with joy as he saw the businessman down below."Mr. Yoongi! You really came back!"

"I'm a man of my word." Yoongi wondered why Hoseok was hanging around this old tree that everyone else avoided. Even children typically stayed away from this tree, being scared by its monstrous appearance."You really like this tree, don't you?"

"Uh-huh! It's my favorite tree in the whole world!" Hoseok climbed around on the tree like a monkey, having no fear at all of possibly falling off."I play on it every day!"

As he began to converse with Hoseok, Yoongi thought of what the boy's parents might think if they knew about this. Surely, they would be very uncomfortable with a grown man talking to their child alone like this. He meant no harm at all, but he knew how it might seem. Still, he remained with Hoseok for a little while longer before deciding that it was time to head home."Be safe on your way home, Hoseok."

"Bye bye, Mr. Yoongi!"

---

This carried on for quite a while. Yoongi made a habit of stopping by the ugly tree on his way home from work each day. He would stay for a bit and chat with Hoseok, the lonely yet cheerful child. Why was Hoseok so happy to talk with Yoongi? Sure, he had said that everyone else ignored him, but shouldn't the boy try to talk to more kids his age? And why did he like the ugly tree so much? Maybe Yoongi would ask about that tonight.

"Mr. Yoongi, are you a daddy?" Hoseok asked with such curiosity as he was swinging his legs as they dangled down from the branch on which he sat.

"No, I'm not." Yoongi answered with a smile."I might be someday but not quite yet."

Shifting up to stand on the thick branch, Hoseok held onto the trunk with one hand."When you are a daddy, I'll be your kid's friend. That will be so cool."

"That will certainly be nice." Giving it a little thought, Yoongi figured this was a good enough time to ask his biggest question."So tell me, Hoseok. Why do you like this tree so much? Most other kids are scared of this tree."

Hoseok grinned so widely and climbed down to get closer to Yoongi, but he stopped at the lowest branch, not wanting to get fully out of the tree."This is my favorite tree because my mommy planted it for me! People say it's ugly, but I love it! It's so big and cool!"

That definitely confused Yoongi."Your mom planted it for you?" How could that be possible? Hoseok only looked to be about nine or ten years old. This tree had to have been planted long before Hoseok was even born.

"Yup! Isn't she the greatest?!" Seeing Yoongi grab his briefcase, Hoseok pouted."Is it time for you to leave, Mr. Yoongi?"

"Yeah, unfortunately, it is." Yoongi was so confused. Exactly how old was this tree?"I'll see you again tomorrow, Hoseok."

"Okay, bye bye, Mr. Yoongi!" Hoseok got back to climbing around in the tree, going higher up on the branches.

Yoongi headed straight home. When he got home, his wife appeared to already be in bed. He took this chance to get on his personal laptop and look something up real quick. Hoseok had sent his curiosity racing in his mind. So he decided to look up the age of the tree. However, looking up the date the tree was planted brought up a result he hadn't expected.

The top result for the ugly tree was an article about an accident. Out of curiosity, Yoongi clicked on the link to the article. As he read the article, he progressively became more and more upset. The article was about an accident that occurred in the ugly tree's location seventeen years ago. What did this have to do with the tree though?

Reading further, Yoongi read that the tree had been planted there as a memorial by a grieving mother. According to the article, a drunk driver swerved off the road and onto the lot, hitting a kid who had been playing there. The kid was killed upon impact."Wait, what?" This didn't make sense to Yoongi. How could this be possible? The article said that the kid's name was... "Jung Hoseok..?" Yoongi would have thought that it was just a coincidence of two kids having the same name, but there was a photo of the child attached to the article. As soon as Yoongi saw it, he couldn't contain himself.

The businessman pulled on his shoes and ran out of his house. He ran as fast as he could, returning to the lot where the ugly tree stood."Hoseok?!" Was the boy still there?

"Mr. Yoongi!" Hoseok called down from a high branch on the tree."Didn't you go home?"

"I did, but..." How could this be? Yoongi didn't understand. If Hoseok died in that accident seventeen years ago, how was he here right now?"Hoseok...How..." How could he even ask this?"How are you...here..?"

At that question, Hoseok shrugged his shoulders."I dunno. Am I not supposed to be here? I don't wanna leave."

"Why not?" Yoongi couldn't possibly understand why a kid like Hoseok would just continue to hang around the spot where he had died.

"I'm waiting." Hoseok scooted toward the tree's trunk and hugged the monstrosity as much as his little arms could."I'm waiting for Mommy and Daddy. I don't want to go without them. It's scary."

This broke Yoongi's heart, tears forming in his eyes. How would Hoseok's parents feel if they knew this? He knew that he would be absolutely devastated if he had a child who died then refused to move on because he was scared to go without his parents. Gulping down a lump in his throat, Yoongi moved closer to the tree and placed a hand against the bark."Hoseok...While you wait...I'll keep coming to see you. You don't need to be scared. Your mom and dad will be with you again someday."

A smile spread across Hoseok's lips."Thanks, Mr. Yoongi. You're the best friend ever."