Chapter 15

Two weeks went by without the appearance of Jihyun. I started to relax back into my daily life at Changsun’s side and the negative tension between us had evaporated. Instead we were increasingly having more awkward or bickering moments with living together. Back at the dorm, Changsun had never really played by the rules Seungho had set. Because of this, and the fact that there were only two of us sharing the same space, more incidents had started to occur.

At first it wasn’t too bad. Changsun had a habit of leaving the bathroom door ajar when he was using the room, and a few times I had walked in on him, ending in shrieks and protests of personal privacy. I was trying my best to get him trained in closing the door, but in the morning when he woke up he wasn’t all that alert. I soon learned not to go near the bathroom until he was in the kitchen.

Changsun’s laziness over washing up was my biggest issue and no matter how many times I scolded him for not using the brand new laundry equipment his parents had bought or the perfectly good dishwasher after meals in the kitchen, he would still throw his clothes down anywhere, and leave dishes where he ate from them. I finally understood how my own Mother had felt, and begrudgingly did the chores, all whilst telling him off for it. It was as if we were a bickering couple now. He would work, and I would clean. When he’d come home from work, I would end up getting irritated because he’d make messes where I had just spent the day cleaning up.

I was really starting to lose my patience playing the housewife role.

And because of this, I had become more interested in leaving the apartment and going to the dorm instead. It was comforting being back there, even though I couldn’t help but clean a little there too. It was the least I could do whilst I avoided Changsun and his pigsty.

After awhile of regular visits to the dorm, I started to notice little notes left out for me, which were the highlight of my day. In Cheolyong’s room I’d find numerous little accounts of how he was feeling stuck on post-it notes. I pulled them all off and had started collecting them in a small scrapbook. He must have mentioned to Seungho about it, since two days after it all started I found his first message. Unlike Cheolyong’s open deliverance of feelings, he would be more discreet, leaving little puzzles for me to figure out. I had to admit; I was starting to really enjoy his notes, and stuck them in my notebook too.

I had also taken an avid interest in watching the new dramas on Changsun’s beloved television. He wasn’t exactly pleased when he’d come home and find me asleep on the couch with the television still on, complaining that I was making his electricity bill sky rocket. I would always argue back with his issues of keeping clean which at first had been enough to send him muttering illegibly under his breath.

But when he arrived home that evening, I was surprised to see him back so early. Usually I would be able to get my Dream High 2 fix well out of the way before he’d walk through the door. It also meant I hadn’t been careful enough to hide my scrapbook and his sharp eyes were quick enough to spot it as I shoved it behind the cushion.

“What is that?” he enquired and I shot him a look.

“Good evening to you too.”

“Yoomi, what are you hiding?” He came and sat down on the couch and I shook my head.

“Nothing important.”

“So why did you stuff it behind here?” He smirked and leant closer. “Is it some kind of diary?”

I nodded. After all, it was as precious as one to me. I just hadn’t really taken the effort to write down my thoughts like they had. But this only enticed him further. For once he wasn’t paying attention to my love affair with JB from the show, which I had admittedly began to talk about more frequently, much to his distaste.

“Can I see it?”

“The point to hiding something from another is so they don’t,” I mentioned but he shoved his hand behind the cushion all the same. “Changsun!”

“I just want to see what you write about!”

I leapt towards him as he managed to wrestle the book free from my grip. He held it above my head with a mischievous grin on his face. “Give it back; it’s not like that at all!”

“Come on Mi-Mi, we’re close, remember? If we can share a bed, we can share-” He stopped talking as he scrambled to open the book and started flipping through the pages. I cringed and waited for his thoughts. “Are, are these from Cheolyong and Seungho?”

“Uh yeah.” I looked away. For some reason I couldn’t take the expression in his chocolate orbs.

He was silent for a moment and then pointed awkwardly at me. “What does Seungho mean by asking you if your heart is aching? Is it? I mean how would he know? You’ve barely been, hang on, how are you getting these?!”

“From the dorm,” I answered and he gasped loudly, dropping my book to the ground. “YAH! THAT’S IMPORTANT TO ME!”

“You’ve been going to the dorm?! How much?! I leave you here when I go to work most days and then you’re asleep here when I- YOU’VE BEEN SNEAKING OUT?!”

If I wasn’t involved in the argument at that point, I would have laughed completely at his accusation. It wasn’t as if I was underage, or his daughter. Though I could feel the strong vibes of protection coming from him at that moment. And it made me keep my mouth shut from shooting back at him irritably.

Clearly his new interaction with the kids on Hello Baby was having more of an affect on him than he mentioned.

“Changsun, you don’t expect me to stay here day in and out, do you?” He merely stared at me and I sighed. “The boys over there need help too-”

“You’re cleaning there too?!” He got up and put distance between us. “Why?!”

“Can you even hear yourself right now?” I attempted to say calmly. His eyes narrowed. “I have friends there too. It’s nice being on their minds. Instead of cleaning non-stop here.”

“But you just said you go there to clean too, what’s the difference?!”

I picked up the book and pointed at one of Cheolyong’s recent thank you notes. “He is happy that I made his bed. You don’t even grunt thanks in my direction! Even when I cleaned up your disgusting hair mess-”

“I never asked you to!”

It was too late to remain calm now. “How was I meant to use the sink with your extensions sitting in there?! How was I meant to mop the floors if your underwear is sitting in the middle of the floor?! I can understand clothing in bathrooms Changsun, but at the end of the stair case?! I nearly tripped over!”

“If it’s so much for you to do, then leave it!”

“Fine!” I agreed, getting up and went into the bathroom. I picked up what I required and took them out to the still outraged man. His eyes widened before he squared his jaw. Dumping the pile of clothing into his arms, I smiled brightly. “Your turn to go do the washing then.”

“Like this is really hard to do, Yoomi. I could do it in my sleep.”

“Really?” I countered and then smiled again. I went over to the kitchen bench where I had left my bag and slung it over my shoulder. “Well then, make sure it’s done before sleeping Changsun. I’ll be back later, and don’t forget that the toilet needs scrubbing too.”

“Another easy task!” he yelled after me as I left the apartment, grinning and wondering how long it would be until he was begging me back home.

Three hours went by and I was bored out of my mind. I had decided to go late night shopping but being a Tuesday, some of my favourite stores were already closed. And after making a bad batch of hot chocolate at a Starbucks café, I had more than enough of being away from home.

Except I didn’t want to admit defeat first.

I was curious though, and wondered if I should attempt to read his mind. It wasn’t like I was in a close proximity of Changsun so he wouldn’t be able to tell. But I hadn’t done the act since the first time he found out. Even if he was driving me nuts, I was one to keep my promises. This decision only made me feel uneasy, and so I eventually caved and slowly made my way home. I thought over many ways to approach his gloating expression when I got back, knowing I’d never hear the end of it if he successfully did the chores.

“It’s not like they were hard tasks to do either,” I mentioned sadly to myself as I stepped out of the elevator and headed towards our front door. I hesitated for a moment, not being able to hear anything coming from the apartment. “No doubt he’s done everything and gone to bed.”

I stepped into the house and let out another defeated sigh when I heard a loud bang.

“AISHHHH! Mum, it won’t stop! Calm down?! How can I when this machine is going crazy?!”

“What on earth are you doing?” I asked as I moved towards the little room off the bathroom. I then gaped at all the mess.

Changsun seemed to relax completely and smiled. “I’m okay now Mum, I’ve got help. Yes, you go back to bed. Sorry, night.”

“Seriously Changsun, what did you do?!”

“The washing!” he cried, flapping his arms exasperatedly. It was like a scene in a drama, the soap suds and overflowing water was everywhere. Changsun was soaked as well, and looked ridiculous.

I started to laugh.

“YAH! THIS IS YOUR FAULT! HOW AM I MEANT TO DO THE WASHING?!”

“It’s not a hard task to do,” I managed to splutter, which only annoyed him further. “Oh Joonie-poo, why didn’t you call for me to help you if you messed up?”

“I didn’t want to admit you were right,” he muttered and I grinned elatedly.

“I’m sorry I didn’t quite catch that.”

He shot me a warning look. “I’m cold and tired; can’t I praise your ego later?”

“Is yours feeling a little bruised right now?” I cheekily nudged him and he groaned loudly. “Alright, let’s get rid of the water first and find out what you did to the machine.”

“Thank you,” he said smartly and I nodded. I then looked at him and he stopped moving. “What now?”

“You didn’t attempt the toilet too right?”

He rolled his eyes. “Been a little preoccupied.”

“Good, can only imagine how you’d break that.”

“Just clean, won’t you?!”

________

Author's Notes...

Well that was a fun chapter! Exactly what I needed to re-read after studying all day. I hope you enjoyed a little break from all the new drama and got to enjoy Yoomi and Changsun with their argument. And even if the washing scene was entirely cliche, it was lighthearted and that's what I was aiming for :) 

And to those wondering, my first exam went very well. Not looking forward to the next one on Monday though, very unprepared. Sigh.

Replies...

@Kate; spank you! Does he love her? Hm.

@cuppop; Here's more! Thanks!!

@FlyingHigh; guess we'll have to find out about Jihyun later? Thanks for reading! 

@Maggie; Thank you, it did go well! Got all the questions I wanted to come up, which was lucky! I love that he's baring his heart but Yoomi is too stuck on the whole "I'm dead" saga also! I'm glad it made your heart skip a beat, this means it'll stop in chapter 22... hehehe! Huge mistake in contacting her... let's hope he doesn't end up having her around all the time. And no the groceries thing was just a manager... didn't think how that would appear, oops! I loved the boys in that last chap too :P Thanks heaps for your kind comments. After Monday I'm free for a couple of weeks - aiming to finish this story as of course I've come up with an even better storyline for another fiction >_< Lol always the way!! This one came up when I was finishing off TSC! Hope you are feeling better btw!!