“Hello Gram,” Tiffany said, grudgingly as she pecked Gail Hwang’s old cheek with a small hint of coldness.

“Fany, darling, what is wrong?”

“I came here early because I need to talk to you.”

The Fourth of July barbecue was two hours away, but Tiffany wanted to have some time with her grandmother on her own. 

“What is wrong?”  Gail asked.

“What’s wrong?  You decide to take my life, and throw it into disarray and ask what’s wrong?”

“Oh that.”

“Oh that?”

“I know you don’t usually wear such royal blue, but I thought you’d look nice in it…” 
“No!”  Tiffany stamped her foot.  “The dress is fine.  I wanted to talk to you about my fiancee.”

“Oh, Yul Kwon is such a sweet boy.  I’m glad you’re going to marry him.”

Tiffany sighed, exasperated.  “YOU decided that, now, didn’t you?  Neither Kwon nor I know what is going on, and I’m very frustrated now.  You really screwed with my life!”

“But now you’re happy with him, aren’t you?  Doesn’t Gram know right?”

Tiffany sighed, exasperated.  Confronting Gail Hwang was like confronting a brick wall.

“Sure Gram, I like him enough…” 

*Enough to KILL him for all the confusion he’s causing, and enough to kill HER for starting it.*

“I’ll see you later, Gram.”

“Yes, and don’t forget to wear the royal blue.  You’ll look BEAUTIFUL.”

“Sure, Gram.”

Tiffany walked about the patio, smiling in the summer breeze at no one in general.  Yul was on his way here, and she was being surrounded by her littlest cousins, smiling and playing along with them. 

“You be the princess, Aunt Fany!”

She wasn’t really their aunt, but it was easier than saying “second cousin whatever”, and they were in too much awe of her to call her just cousin Tiffany.  However, they didn’t like saying Tiffany either, but Fany just worked perfectly.

“What?  I don’t want to be the princess!” she smiled.

“But you’re pretty!”

“So are you!”

“But you look like a princess.  Aunt Bora says you’re the Ice Queen, and that you could freeze us, but I told her that you weren’t cold at all, and you couldn’t’ freeze us ‘cuz you never did before, and that you weren’t a Queen because you weren’t THAT old!”

Tiffany smiled.

“Aunt Bora also says that you’re very ugly, but I told her that you were pretty, and you looked prettier than her.  She has too much make up.” Tiffany was laughing. 

“Well, I still can’t be princess anyway, because I still don’t have my prince!”

“Uncle Yul’s coming, right?”

UNCLE YUL?!?!?!?!?! 

“Since when did you start calling him Uncle Yul?  We’re not even married yet!”

“But you’re going to, and when we saw him a month ago when he visited Daddy, daddy told us he was Uncle Yul, and that he was going to marry you!”

Tiffany blushed.  Kids just say the DARNDEST things!  As she stood, talking with her little cousin, she felt a hand rest on her velvet-covered shoulder.  She turned carefully.  Only one person could make her heart beat ten times faster like that.
But when she turned around, she found that her heart had lied.  But it wasn’t a huge disappointment.  With a little relief, and with more joy than usual, she greeted Yoona Hwang.

“How ARE you?  I haven’t seen you in a LONG time!” Yoona smiled, her white teeth, brilliant and her black eyes sparkling.  Tiffany always loved those eyes.  They were so unique and beautiful.

Though the two women had only met each other last year at Yoona’s wedding, they had gone on shopping expeditions, and gone to various functions together.  Yoona was a wonderful woman to stick around with, because she was so open and honest.  Yunho loved her very much, and Tiffany liked Yunho a lot, and liked his tastes in everything.  And his taste in women was NOT bad.

Yoona was always very understanding.  Not only was that special about her, but she had the advantage of knowing Yul when he was a child, for she had gone to school with him.  Yoona could always see the whole story, and evidently, she saw the whole story in the engagement too, for a few weeks after the engagement was announced, Yoona had called her, and Tiffany had confessed everything to her, and Yoona simply understood.  From that time, they had grown VERY close.

But now, no one knew what was going on in Tiffany’s head.  Yoona drew her friend to a corner and they started to talk.  “So is he coming?”

“Yeah, of course.”

“Something’s up, isn’t it?  You’re so nervous around him now.”

“He gives no reason for me not to be nervous.”

“Are you feeling something for him?”

“I…I don’t know!”

Yoona nodded understandingly.  “I know I can’t tell you what to feel, but I’ll tell you that in all my years of knowing Yul Kwon, I don’t believe I’ve ever seen him as happy as he is with you.” Tiffany nodded, touched by that comment.  A warm feeling of smugness came over her, and she felt a satisfaction that was not known to man or woman.

“But if he hurts you, I will gladly kill him for you.”

Tiffany laughed.