“Have some more, Yuri.” Lee Soo Man insists at the dinner table.   She unwillingly smiles. “It’s okay. I still have a lot on my plate.” It’s Yuri-ssi to you! Besides, I do have a lot on my plate, not literally, though.   She slowly glances at the man across from her. Thank goodness Taecyeon ssi is here with us. I feel much more at ease, knowing I won’t lose control of myself. I guess he was the guest before me. I wonder what they talked about. Taecyeon ssi doesn’t look happy as usual.   Taecyeon catches Yuri looking at him so he sends back a friendly smile, embarrassing her.   She shyly smiles back and averts her attention to the lady beside Taecyeon.   So, she’s my mother. Lee Soo Man had introduced us to one another when I first arrived, but he didn’t say ‘Mother’. She takes a sip from her glass cup of water. I wonder if she became paralyzed after or before I was born.   “Yuri,” Lee Soo Man speaks once again. “I’d really like it if you live with us for the time being so that I can take care of you in your father’s absence.”   She gently puts her cup down and avoids looking at Lee Soo Man. “I’m glad and I appreciate the thought, but…”   “I’m sorry for pressuring you. It’s just…your father’s a great friend and I’d…”   She looks up at the man.   “…I’d like to understand and see what it feels like to have a daughter.” Lee Soo Man’s voice is low gentle.   Yuri and Taecyeon can tell there is a slight sad tone within the words.   Ah. They don’t have any other children? She secretly looks around. If they did, we’d all be here together. I guess…I was their only child.   “Lee Soo Man ssi.” She courageously begins. “Have you…”   *   The couples, Jonghyun and Jessica; Minho and Yoona, look at one another. It’s 10:26 p.m., and they have arrived at Seoul Park. The entire amusement park is privately rented for the couples to enjoy.   “Noona, why are you here?” Minho kindly asks at the sight of Jessica with Jonghun instead of Yuri.   I want to ask you that too! I thought it was going to be a date for Jonghyun and me. I guess I was being naïve again. “Well, Jong—”   “You read the letter, right? Since Yuri can’t make it, I decided to ask Jessica to tag along.” Jonghyun interrupts Jessica’s answer to reply to Minho. “Yoona ssi,” he sweetly turns his attention to Yoona. “I hope you don’t mind us, but we’ll definitely not barge in on yours and Minho’s date.” He sends a peace sign with a cute smile.   Yoona shakes her head. “No, I don’t mind. In fact, I’m glad you two came.”   Minho exhales and a cloud of white air is seen from his mouth as he speaks. “Okay. Since we’re all here and as promised, we’re going to separate and meet back here in three hours.”   “Got it!” Jonghyun excitedly exclaims. He rubs his hands together. “See you in three!” He turns and motions for Jessica to follow him.   Yoona and Minho patiently wait until the couple disappeared. When Jonghyun and Jessica are out of sight, they unclasp their hands from one another and walk the opposite direction.   “Now that I think about it,” says Yoona, “this is the first time we’ve let someone joined us in our ‘date’. Why?” She nudges him on the arm with her elbow.   “No reason. It’s just…to help a friend.” Why am I upset that she’s not here? Why am I happy that Jessica’s in place of her? What is wrong with me?!   *   Jessica continues to follow the silent Jonghyun. They both haven’t speak up to one another ever since they had left Minho and Yoona at the entrance. Yuri was supposed to have been his partner for this date? But why did he asked me to come along? Am I just his rebound girl?   A breeze hits them.   Jessica stops and pulls over her jacket over her and furiously rubs her hands together. I shouldn’t have—   “Here.” Jonghyun is about two steps in front of her and isn’t facing her. One of his arms is out to her.   What…what is he…doing? She hesitates to jump to conclusions. I can’t! If I mistake that hand for him wanting to hold mine, I’d be-   “Ya!” He shakes his hand angrily and finally looks at her. “What are you waiting for? You’re cold, right?” He shyly walks over to her and grabs her hand and intertwines it with his hand. “Here.” He quickly averts his attention and begins walking, dragging her along with him.   This! This can’t be happening! I’m…I’m holding hands with him?! She can’t look up. She can’t focus on anything. She can’t help but only look at the hands locking beside her. Is this really my hand? I can’t feel anything because of the cold.   She raises her free hand to touch it, only to bump into his back. “Ouch…” She rubs her nose.   “Sorry. I forgot.”   She looks at him who is taking out a pair of mittens out of his back pants pocket. The mittens are white with pink hearts. She can’t help but let out a giggle at it. Her giggle stops when he lets go of her hand and gently puts on one side of the pair of mittens on her hand and puts the other side on his hand.   After he finishes, he locks his hand with hers again. This time, he doesn’t drag her. Instead, he gently kisses her nose where she had touched after the sudden bump onto his back, and he says in a sweet dreamy voice, “My Ice Princess, let’s go.”   *   There definitely was tension in the dining room when we had dinner. I wonder why Soo Man ssi and his family and Yuri ssi were having dinner together. Taecyeon is waiting in the living room for Yuri. She is helping them clean the dinner table. At the end, I never got an honest answer to my question.   “Taecyeon ssi? You’re not leaving yet?” Yuri asks, coming opposite of him down a step.   He gently smiles. “I was waiting for you.”   She points at herself. “Me? Oh, you don’t have to.”   “But you said at the table that you came here by taxi. I don’t think you’d find one at this time.”   It’s true. I told Jonghyun to call within an hour, but that man didn’t, so now I’ve been here for almost two hours! “I will.” She asserts. I don’t want to go home with anyone right now.   Lee Soo Man enters the room behind them, pulling his wife in a wheelchair. “Yuri ssi. I think it’s best if you were to go along with Taecyeon ssi. It’s much safer.”   She looks at the men. She smiles as she gives in. “You really won’t mind?” She questions Taecyeon.   He sarcastically bows with a hand on his stomach and another hand sticking out. “With pleasure.”   *   “It turned out nice!” Yoona giggles as she and Minho look at their picture taken by Minho.   They always take pictures to post up onto their couple me2day account so they can let fans know what they do on their dates.   “Next, I want to take a picture with that!” She points to a tall statue. She runs to climb it.   “Be careful!” He warns as he gets in a pose, ready to take the picture.   After she successfully climbs onto the statue and got the pose she wanted, he counts to three and presses the shutter. She jumps down and rushes over to see the result.   “You should become a photographer!” She says, complimenting his picture taking skills.   He smiles in return.   “Nah, maybe you shouldn’t. It’s because of me that these shots turned out pretty.” She quickly shoots him down.   He smirks and ruffles her hair. “Don’t get too full of yourself!” He stops and lets her fix her hair to put it into place. “Come on. Let’s go.”   She happily follows him like a child. “That’s right. I received your text about doing you a favor. What is it?”   He almost trips on his own foot. “Ah, that.” Is this a good idea? “Well, I was wondering, can you become friends with…Yuri?”   “Yuri?” She stops walking, confused. “The name sounds familiar.”   He smiles. “Our manager’s daughter.”   She claps in realization. “Ah, her! But she likes Taecyeon…”   He sighs and pulls her close and walks with her. “I don’t think so. I think she likes Jonghyun.”   She looks up in disbelief. “Jonghyun? How do you know?”   “It’s true that they must have something together, Taecyeon and Yuri, but…Jonghyun…he’s too serious in this game.”   She perks up and moves from Minho. “Are you saying he fell for her?”   “Yeah, and I think she’s fallen for him too.” I don’t know why, but it pains me to actually say that.   She perks her head to the side. “That’s weird. I thought you and Yuri weren’t getting along when I first met her.”   He chuckles. “We didn’t. Somehow…we made up.”   “Giving her a chance?” Yoona smiles slyly, implying something.   He nods, not hesitating to agree. “Yeah. I guess.”   *   Gosh, her small soft hands feel so nice! If only I can hold them every day! Jonghyun’s heart is beating super fast. To hide his smile and happiness, he avoids looking at Jessica. Calm down, heart! What are you, a girl? We’ve been quiet ever since I had put on the gloves for the both of us…does she not like it? Did I annoy her? Did I make her feel uncomfortable? He deeply inhales. Say something man!   “Do…do you want to go on something?” He finally says. That’s right! Just follow my imagination!   She looks at him, but he’s not facing her. He must not want to look at me because I’m not Yuri. He’s forcing himself to have fun.   He closes his eyes and prays that she’d pick the Ferris wheel. Wait! The Ferris wheel’s not here! I have to find it! “Let’s go!”   She gets dragged again. What’s the rush? You don’t want to go on a ride with me? …Yuri…how I envy you.   *   Yuri and Taecyeon are outside of the gate of Lee Soo Man’s house. They have already bid the family goodbye and are about to get into Taecyeon’s manager’s minivan to be taken back home.   “You can go in first, Yuri.” Taecyeon kindly invites her.   “Taecyeon ssi, I think I really should go by taxi.” I need to do some thinking of what just happened.   “You can call me Taecyeon. So, to start our formal friendship, let me take you so you won’t waste money.”   She forcibly smiles and waves her hands in rejection. “No, it’s really alright.” Her tone of voice becomes dejected. “I really need to…please.”   There is a slight moment of silence between the two.   Finally, he gives in. With his hands in the air and a gentle smile for comfort, he says, “Alright, you win. But, are you sure?”   She smiles with a sigh of relief. “Yeah, I’m sure. Thank you.”   “Well, then, I’ll see you again.” He hops onto the car. “Be safe.”   They bid one another goodbye.   She silently watches his minivan drive away with a smile. As soon as she sees the minivan turns a corner, she stops waving and her smile fades. She turns back to look at the house. While looking at it, she thinks back to when she had courageously brought up the conversation of lying to one’s child to Lee Soo Man, her own biological father.   The father who had gave her up to his friend.   “Lee Soo Man ssi.” Yuri courageously begins. “Have you lied to your child—ah, assuming that you had one.” She secretly tries to take note of his reaction.   Unfortunately, his reaction is...nothing at all. He doesn’t seem bothered about it.   “I think every parent will have or have lied to their children. As the saying goes, ‘Ignorance is bliss.’”   She awkwardly smiles. “What I meant was, a lie so big that…it’s not a white lie.”   Lee Soo Man stops chewing and comes forward, not understanding what she’s trying to say. “What do you mean? White lies are what parents do best, isn’t it?”   She puts her eating utensils down and intertwines her hands together. Looking down at her plate, she gathers courage. “Assuming you had a child and there was a secret behind it…like…her birthplace, birthday, or…” She finally manages to look up at her own father. “…or about being her parents or not.”   She doesn’t blink. She is no longer feeling scared, but a sense of authority and demand came over her. She catches him quietly gasp, and his eyes imply that he’s having a nervous reaction to the question. So, what’s your answer, ‘Appa’?   Lee Soo Man sighs. “I think as a parent, we always want what’s best for our child…even if the lies we tell or make may not be white lies.”   “Are you saying that lying or keeping your child away from the truth of those important facts is all for the sake of the child?” Her voice is no longer soft or calm. It is the tone of a demand.   The man grabs his drink. “If not for the child, then who else?”   *   Back in the minivan, Taecyeon undergoes a deep-thinking process. Since I can’t get answers from Lee Soo Man or from President, I’ll ask Yoona myself. She has to give me an answer to why she and Minho are pretending to date!   He clicks his tongue in anger. Have they been doing this for two years? What do they do on their dates then? Do they really kiss in those photos? Are those smiles even for real?   He looks at the lights outside the minivan. He thinks back to the scene of what happened before he had decided to come visit Lee Soo Man for answers.   Taecyeon has just gotten out of the dance room and is about to head over to his dorm when he hears Yoona’s voice from an empty room across from him.   Who is she talking to? She seems worried.   “…going to do? Are you sure it’s fine?”   He waits to hear another voice, but no one else seems to be in the room with her. He looks around. No one is with them on their floor. He walks over to the door, about to pull the knob open.   “…so they know we’re dating for fake?”   Taecyeon pauses. Did I hear correctly? ‘dating for fake’? He slowly opens a small passage through the door to listen to the conversation. He spots Yoona sitting across from where he is standing. Her back is facing him and she is facing the window. It seems that she’s not aware of being listened to. Ah, she’s talking on the phone.   “Minho ah, but are you sure Jonghyun really will leave us alone and not spy on us? If this gets out, we’d be dead and our presidents would be really mad, especially since it’s their idea in the first place.”   WHAT! The presidents planned this! Why?!   “…Got it. Understand. Okay. See you.” Yoona hangs up the phone. She sighs stressfully and stands up. She walks over to the door. As she shoves the door open, she realizes something.   “I thought I closed the door.” She carefully steps her head out and looks left and right for someone. She spots no one, so she casually walks out of the room.   Taecyeon, who was hiding in another room next to the room where Yoona was in, comes out. Furious and confused, he is determined to find out answers.   But, I guess she won’t be coming back to the dorm until late, just like their usual ‘dates.’ Taecyeon perks up his lips in frustration.   Seriously, why would the presidents do this? Speaking of the presidents, Lee Soo Man and Yuri were having a weird conversation about lying to children. What’s up with that? He realizes something. “Manager, is it just me or is it that we have not been moving at all?”   “We haven’t moved. I parked here.”   “Why?”   “You know, it’s not like you to leave someone behind, especially a girl. So I parked here, in case you want to go back,” the manager says.   Taecyeon smiles. That’s right. What am I doing? My problem can be solved whenever. But Yuri… He thinks back to when they first met.   “Even though she said she rather find a taxi, maybe she wanted time alone. But, sometimes, in fact, most of the time, it’s always best to be with someone when stressed. Don’t you think so?” The manager looks back with a smile. “I’ll cover for you two.”   Taecyeon tosses away his problems and opens the door. “When I find her, I’ll call for you.” He hops out. “Thank you. For me and for her.” He runs back and turns at the corner that they had to. He doesn’t see her in front of the house. Where could she be?   He runs passed Lee Soo Man’s house and turns another corner. Thankfully, there are few cars and many lights to guide him. He passes a few blocks and looks desperately for her, hoping she’d be anywhere in sight. I hope nothing’s—   He stops running and pants. Across from him is Yuri crying under a tall street lamp. She is crying. This girl…   “Ya, I’ve seen you cried once. I don’t mind you crying again.” He gently says as he walks over to her, opening his arms.   Yuri flinches at the sound of his voice, surprised that he’s here with her. I thought…I thought he left. What’s he doing here? She wipes her tears in a hurry.   “You don’t have to tell me anything.” He stands beside her and hugs her. “I’ll listen to whatever.”   A teardrop falls again. Taecyeon ssi is like Appa. Nice like Appa. Understanding like Appa. Appa, I miss you…and I’m scared. She slowly raises her hands and hugs him back. Under the lamp post, she cries all her heart out, once again. But this time, it isn’t for her Appa, but for her real father, Lee Soo Man.   “Hey, Let’s go to Seoul Park.”   *   “At this time? Isn’t it closed?” Taecyeon’s manager questions Taecyeon after Taecyeon told him the next destination. He had found Yuri and Taecyeon after Taecyeon gave him a call.   Taecyeon buckles himself up. “Nope. Apparently not tonight.”   Yuri has already forgotten about the present problem and asks Taecyeon, “Why do you want to go there this late?”   Taecyeon smiles. “To bring back that smile of yours.”   *   “Thank you!” Yoona and Minho finished having a late dinner together.   The park’s staffs are working late just for them, so instead of buying the food from the amusement park just for them, they also ordered food for everyone working there just for this false date.   A man who works in the park stops them and asks for Yoona’s autograph while getting permission from Minho.   Minho sarcastically answers, “Well, I can’t help that my girl’s too pretty.” He moves to the sidelines and waits for Yoona to finish signing and taking a picture. A few seconds later, Yoona and the man bow to one another.   Minho walks over to Yoona and says, “Ready to continue?”   Yoona smiles. “Yep!” She touches her belly. “But can we walk for a while? I don’t think going o