“We’re back,” Yoochun yells, announcing our return as we come through the door.

“Where’s our surprise? Hyung said you were going to bring us back something,” Junsu says eagerly. His face falls a little when he doesn’t see anything. “Did you forget it?”

Unable to take his disappointed face, I bring out one of the bags I’d hidden behind my back. “It’s right here.”

“What’d you get?” Yunho asks, coming to investigate.


“Ice cream!”

“Did you say ice cream?” A happy smile grows on Changmin’s face.

“She did,” Jaejoong says, smiling. “That was really sweet of you, _________.”

“Thank Yoochun oppa,” I say, smiling back. “He bought them. I just convinced him to get some for you all too. He already owed me and it’s no fun to eat ice cream by yourself.”

“Plus the way she suggested we give it to you is going to be fun too,” Yoochun says as he takes the bag from me and starts taking the cup sized containers on the low table.


“What does that mean?” Changmin asks suspiciously, his hand already suspended over a container.

“She chose the flavors so even I don’t know what we got.”


“This one’s mine,” I quickly say, picking up the one marked by a star. “A scoop of green tea and a scoop of red bean paste. The rest are good too. I didn’t know what you liked, so I just got the ones that tasted best.”

“The ones that tasted best?” Junsu asks.

“I kinda had a little sample of everything before I decided,” I shrug.

“So that’s what took you so long,” Yoochun accuses. “You could’ve let me help.”

I just giggle guiltily and give another shrug. “Then you’d know what they are.”

“Do we at least get a hint about what they are?” Yunho asks with a smile. “We won’t get something weird like octopus flavored?”

“I promise I didn’t get anything strange. All the flavors come from a fruit or a seed. Go ahead and pick your poison, gentlemen.”

“That sounds comforting,” Jaejoong chuckles, choosing one.

    Changmin quickly snatches his choice from the table. While I pass out the wooden spoons that came along with the ice cream, Yunho lets Junsu and Yoochun pick before taking the last one.

“Ready? On three, you can open them,” I tell them. I count slowly, enjoying their excitement over such a small thing. “One, two, three.”

Together, they rip off the tops.

“What’d you guys get?” Changmin asks after looking at his. “No offense, _______, but mine looks like dirt.”
“It’s not dirt,” I protest. “It’s coffee.”

“Coffee’s bitter. How can it be ice cream?”

“Just try it. Trust noona.” Reaching over, I scoop some up and put it in his mouth when he tries to say something else.

His eyes widen in surprise as it melts in his mouth. “It’s sweet. And creamy. And tasty.”

“I told you it was good. You really think I’d try to feed you something bad?”

“Not any more,” he teases before digging in. “Hold on, you guys didn’t answer me. What flavors did you get?”

Jaejoong carefully swallows his mouthful before answering. “Vanilla, but there’s something else too. I can’t really figure it out.”

“I think the girl said they add a little bit of peppermint when they make it,” I tell him.

He snaps his fingers. “That’s what it is!”


“I got strawberry,” Junsu says happily, some off his lips. “And there’s actually strawberries in here!”

“The chocolate’s pretty good,” Yunho replies.

“I can’t decide if mine’s orange or mango,” Yoochun says, still looking in his cup. Taking a scoop, he savors it. “Yup, it’s mango.”

“I’m glad you like my choices,” I smile, taking the first bite of mine now that I’m satisfied I chose well.

“That looks good,” Yoochun says, eyeing mine.


“No, my ice cream,” I reply, moving it away from him. “Remember, you owe me.”

Junsu looks up from enjoying his ice cream. “Why does he owe you?”


“Because he made me fall down in the waves and get all wet when I won our race.”

“I didn’t do it on purpose,” Yoochun protests. “I’m still trying to figure out how you won at all since you’re legs are so much shorter than mine.”

“They’re not that short and for your information...What exactly do you think you’re doing, buster?” I ask as I catch Changmin’s spoon poised over my cup.


“Just a little taste?” he pleads, giving me a hopeful look.

“All right.”

His face brightening, he takes a bit and pops it into his mouth. “That’s good.”

“Only one. You have your own,” I say when he tries to get another bite.

“Okay,” he sighs.

“That’s not fair, ________,” Yoochun pouts. “How come he gets some? I bought it for you. Just one teensy tiny spoonful?”

“Fine.”

Yoochun grins, closes his eyes, and opens his mouth.

With a shake of my head, I feed him some of my ice cream. “Happy?”

He nods and his lips. “No wonder you like that kind.”

“Anyone else want some?” I offer.

“Yes, please,” Jaejoong says politely. Yunho and Junsu also nod their heads tentatively.

“Just pass it around,” I laugh, having accepted that to have food means sharing it when I’m around these guys.

“So, now that we’ve had desert, should I start dinner?” Jaejoong asks as we laze about after finishing our treat.

“I’m in favor of that motion,” Changmin says, raising his hand but not taking his eyes from his book.

“Me too,” Yunho echoes

.
“Doesn’t matter to me,” Junsu replies. “I’m still kind of full from the ice cream.”


Yoochun’s only reply is a light snore.

“Can I help?” I ask, sitting up.

“Sure,” Jaejoong smiles. “I can find something for you to do.”

I follow him into the kitchen, scooping up the other bag I’d left by the door. “Can I put this in the refrigerator?”

“What is it?”

“Bento. Yoochun got three to share for your midnight snack.”

“He’s going to make us fat,” he quietly laughs as he begins taking food from the refrigerator and cabinet. “I think we can fit them in here somewhere.”

“Did you buy the entire market?” I joke when he finishes.

“I guess I went a little over board, huh?” he laughs. “I couldn’t help myself. Everything looked so good and it’s all fresh.”

“I can tell.”

“I’m a little worried I’ll be too busy to use it all before it spoils now.”

“Don’t worry. I can cook too so it’ll all get used.”

“Really? We wouldn’t want to trouble you.”

I wave away his worries. “It’d be no trouble. Like I told Yoochun oppa, I miss cooking for other people. It makes me happy.”

“It is a good feeling, isn’t it?” he agrees. “It’s like a physical manifestation of love.”

“Exactly!” I smile even wider. “That’s what my mom taught me. She says whenever you make food, you should put your love in it so the people eating can taste it. That’s what makes homemade food better than anything else.”

“She sounds like a wise woman.”

“She is. I hope I end up half as amazing a person as she is.”

“I’m sure you will,” Jaejoong assures me with a smile.

“Thanks, oppa,” I reply, smiling shyly.

He just smiles before turning to observe the pile of food again. “How does hibachi tuna with maui salad sound?”

“I don’t know what that is, but it sounds yummy.”

“I’ll show you. It’s not hard. Would you prefer the fish or the salad?”

I glance at the fish before quickly looking away. “Salad. Fish eyes creep me out.”

Jaejoong laughs. “They are a little scary. I’ll take care of them then after I get you started on the salad. It’s really simple, but just ask if you need help with something.”

    I nod, paying close attention as he begins separating out the vegetables and other ingredients I’ll need and explaining the process. He stays close as I begin, but once he sees I’m comfortable, he starts on the fish. We work quietly, each focused on our respective dish. I notice Jaejoong looking over occasionally to check on my progress. He seems satisfied.

Junsu comes into the kitchen and hops up onto the counter beside my growing pile of neatly cut vegetables. Picking up a piece of cucumber, he says, “_______, about what you said at the airport the other day...”

“Yes?”

“Did you really mean it? You’d really do that for me?”

“Of course.”

“What would you do for him?” Jaejoong asks, looking up from the sauce.

“Extra English lessons before we go to America,” I reply, turning away from Junsu to give him a wink while Junsu tries to come up with something and fails.

His answering smile shows he guessed what I promised to help with. “Oh. Good, Junsu needs all the help he can get.”

“Thanks, hyung,” Junsu chuckles. Turning back to me as he snaps up a piece of ginger and nibbles at it, he asks quietly, “Do you know when you can do it?”

“When we go back to Korea in a few weeks I’ll call her, set up a girls day, and ask then,” I answer, lowering my voice as well. “Now shoo before you eat all my work and there’s none left for dinner.”

“Thanks again, _______.” He smiles before jumping down and going back to the couch.

“So am I correct in guessing he wasn’t asking about your helping him with English?” Jaejoong asks, coming beside me, his eyes on Junsu.

“You are. I guess ever since I told him I’d ask Ye Jin, he’s been thinking about it. When we get back to Seoul, I’ll call her and figure out a way to find out if she likes him too.”

“Let’s hope the answer’s a ‘yes.’”

I nod in agreement. “After seeing the two of them together, I think that’s highly likely. Ye Jin doesn’t seem to be the kind of girl to not go after what she wants, but I have a feeling that if she does like Junsu, she hasn’t said anything for the same reason he hasn’t.”

“And that would be?”
“Being afraid that the other won’t feel the same and losing the friendship. Makes sense.”

“In a way yes, but they’ll never know for sure if they don’t try. Isn’t something precious as love worth the risk?”

“They’d already risking losing love; a friend’s love.”

“It almost sounds like you’ve had this debate before,” Jaejoong comments.

“I have,” I shrug. “Just the other way around. One of my best friends had a similar problem and I’m just repeating her argument. I guess it’s easy for us to say go for it when it’s not us taking the risk.”

“I suppose so. I’ve never been in that situation before.”

My eyes stray to Yoochun’s sleeping figure. “Me neither.”

“Are you all right, _________? You look a little flushed.” Jaejoong puts a cool hand against my forehead.

“I’m fine, probably just a little sunburnt,” I reply quickly.

“You’re not sick are you?” Yunho comes over, putting his hand in the same place Jaejoong’s had been seconds before. “It probably wasn’t good for you to be in wet clothes in the cold.”

“I wasn’t in them long. I feel fine,” I assure him. “Did you need something, oppa?”

“I just came in for a drink. Let us know if you don’t feel well.”

“I can’t get sick. It’s not on the schedule. Speaking of schedules, what do we have tomorrow?”

Yunho thinks for a minute while rummaging for his drink. “There’s two magazine interviews in the morning, then a short television interview, and then I think they want us to begin practicing for the concert that’s next week.”

“Sounds like we’ll be busy.”

“Nothing out of the ordinary,” he smiles. Taking a slice of cucumber, he dips it into Jaejoong’s sauce.

“That’s for the fish, not the vegetables,” Jaejoong says, shooing Yunho away. “Just wait another fifteen minutes.”

“But I’m hungry,” Yunho says, rubbing his stomach.

“Fifteen minutes,” Jaejoong replies firmly.

“Fine.” With a wink at me, he takes another slice of cucumber before heading out.

“It’s a good thing Changmin’s reading and Yoochun’s asleep,” I chuckle. “Otherwise I don’t think there’d be anything left of the salad.”

Jaejoong begins to reply, but whatever he was going to say is lost in his laughter as Changmin comes in, his eyes already searching for something to snack on.

=========================

Annyoung lovelies! Please enjoy the update. Saranghae!

crashingrose: ke ke, yes indeed.

MewNikkiChan: I wish he was my prince.

angelaisabel: thank you for reading ^^. I am too.

nar12345: I'll try not to swim too far. Remember, he's a guy, which means it'll take him a while to realize something and our heroine is trying not to realize it. \

middle11992: ke ke, same here.

ChinkyKayla: Aren't you a clever one? ^^ Guessing my plans. All in good time.

Caribbeanpop17: Omo, don't tell me! I'm only episode 10! Curses on not having internet for a long enough period of time to watch them! X(

PurpleangelSJ: All in good time. Heads up, you'll be back in the story soon. ;)