Chapter 36. Domesticity

He tucked her blanket up to her chin and soothed her hair, “Sleep tight, Euna. I love you.”

“I love you too, Appa,” she giggled when her appa’s thorny chin brushed her cheek. He promised to shave tomorrow so she didn’t complain anymore.

Sitting back, Yonghwa couldn’t help but stare at his daughter. He smiled tucking some strands of hair behind her ear. This little one changed his life and the love he has for her is overwhelming. Euna is the reflection of the beautiful memory he had with Ha In. He swallowed the sudden knot in his throat and masked the bittersweet feeling with a tiny smile, “As days go by you’re looking more and more like your umma…”

“I do?” That made her snicker again but she frowned touching her hair, “But I want to curl my hair like her too so we look very the same! But halmeoni said I can’t…”

“What cur—?” A grin escaped when he realized what she meant so he softly pinched her nose, “I’m talking about umma in heaven.”

“Oh, I’m sorry! Halmeoni says that a lot of times,” Euna looked at her umma’s smiling picture at the bedside table then she became thoughtful, “Would she be angry if we get you a new wife?”

Yonghwa fell silent for a while suddenly realizing the weight of her question. He shook his head hoping he was right, “No… I don’t think so.”

“Good… I don’t want her to get angry at me or you or my new mommy.”

“She won’t, trust me…” he took the bear by her foot and gave it to her, “You better sleep now… school tomorrow.”

“Now that she is your girlfriend, is she gonna live here too?”

Her eyes glimmered with anticipation but that innocent question made him chuckle, “Not yet, baby. Boyfriends and girlfriends don’t live together.”

“Ahhhh…” she nodded pensively, “That’s why Daehan Oppa said no when I asked him to live with us.”

“You did what?” Yonghwa could not believe where his daughter get all her ideas sometimes.

“Hmmm… I asked him one time and you have same expression like ‘what?’”

He laughed hard with that impression of his voice then cleared his throat, “Ya… go to sleep, remember Joohyun’s gonna drive you to school tomorrow.”

“Oh yeah!” Euna clasped her hands together, “But Appa, I hope we marry her soon so she can live with us or we can live with her, okay?”

“Okay, okay…” he sighed as he fixed her quilt then stood, “And you, young lady, better close those eyes now…”

“And Appa!” Euna called back and followed him with her eyes when he walked towards the door.

“What now?” Yonghwa grumbled dropping his hand off the doorknob.

“You’re gonna tell her about getting my baby brother soon too, okay?”

Yonghwa opened his mouth to say something until he realized what she meant. The image of that night at the hotel where they were both soaking wet settled in his mind. Shaking his head, he muttered, “Euna-ya… you go to sleep and stop telling your father what to do!”

With that, he switched the main lights off leaving the soft illumination from her lampshade to flood the room. Shaking his head, he closed the door with the sound of Euna’s voice chanting, “I’m gonna have my baby brother… I’m gonna have my baby brother…”

Yonghwa just proven that not a single moment did Euna forget that wish and chuckled with the thought of giving her what she wanted through Joohyun. Then he shut his eyes tight removing the visions that appeared in his mind. Ever since that night of seeing her almost for him, his ual awareness had been awaken. He was fighting over the idea of telling that most important wish of the ‘baby brother’ to Joohyun since it was rather more awkward than the fact that Euna wanted her to be her new mommy.

As he entered his room, he got reminded that he needed to call her before sleeping. Yonghwa smiled feeling like he had gone back to high school. The smile widened when she answered after a single ring, “Yoboseyo, Hyun?”

“Hi… Oppa… something wrong?”

He could imagine her half-asleep eyes by that sultry drawl. “Do you think I will call you just because something’s wrong?” Yonghwa scoffed ignoring the effects of what that voice doing to his body and thoughts.

“Fine…” The giggle was replaced by another shiver-inducing sigh as she continued softly, “Okay, I get it. You just wanted to hear my voice.”

“Joohyun has sixth sense…” he laid himself down to bed imagining her smiling face.

“You are so cheesy, Director Jung.”

If she keeps that y laugh, Yonghwa swore the night won’t end too well for him so he pretended to be disappointed just to release the tension in his own body, “Arasso, good night then…”

“Opppppaaaa….”

That whine was more like a soft moan that brought his imagination into overdrive. He wanted to end the call and take another shower— a cold one this time. He shifted restlessly, “Kidding. What are you doing right now?”

“Talking to you?”

“Ya…” he groaned but couldn’t help but smile.

“Fine… I’m lying on my bed right now. Phone on my ear, listening to your breathing…” she let off another breathy sigh before continuing, “Wishing I can see you right now…”

“Much better…” he murmured. That was what he was wishing as well— to see her, to touch her.

“Now, tell me what you’re doing...”

“Same thing,” Yonghwa grinned.

“Let me hear it…”

“Alone in my room thinking of the meeting with the CEO tomorrow.”

“That’s not nice…” she laughed softly.

“I’m not finished yet,” Yonghwa grumbled then chuckled, “You easily get so agitated…”

“Palli…”

He took another deep exhale, “I have tons of problem waiting at my table as we speak. I would be doing what I have been doing since I got promoted to that position. My day would probably be the same, except it won’t be because of you. Because I know tomorrow is another day spent with you. I will be doing all the same thing but now I have a better reason to finish things, to solve problems as fast and as efficiently as I can because I can’t wait to put all my focus on you… and you alone…”

The line went silent. Yonghwa knew she was taking in everything he said. He smiled because of the courage and certainty he had laying his feelings to her, “I miss you, Hyun. This silly distance and even the fact that I will see you tomorrow could not make me stop from missing you…”

“I miss you too…”

“Me more…” Yonghwa settled deeper on his pillow because of the way she said that—soft and warm.

“No…” Joohyun grumbled.

“Arasso, Joohyun-ssi, you miss me mor