Yoona stirred in her sleep and rolled on the bed, untangling herself from the soft white comforter she and Jiyong used. She wanted to hug the person beside her but to her surprise, Jiyong’s side of the bed was already empty. She sat up immediately, rubbing her eyes and checked the time. A loud shout was heard and her bedroom door went wide open.

 

“Good morning Mommy! Happy birthday!” Ji Young, their youngest son greeted her happily while handing her a white rose.

 

“Good morning baby and thank you~” She said, engulfing her son with a warm bear hug.

 

A moment later, the twins - Yoo Jin and Ji Yoo came in with balloons and a handmade giant card with their pictures on it. “Happy birthday Mommy!” They cheered in unison.

 

“Thank you so much Yoo Jin, Ji Yoo~” She said as she motioned them for a group hug.

 

Then, her husband, Kwon Jiyong came in with a large tray of food and a small cake with a lighted candle.

 

“Seng il chook ha hamni da, Seng il chook ha hamni da, Sa rang ha nuen my Deer Yoona/ Mommy , Seng il chook ha hamni da!” Together, they sang to the woman they all love and cherish.

 

“Happy birthday Mrs. Kwon, Saranghae~” Jiyong said and kissed his wife on the lips while using his hands to cover the twin's eyes. Their eldest son was quick-witted, putting his hands over his eyes immediately. “Okays! Now, make a wish.”

 

Yoona closed her eyes and wished as a lone tear fell from her eyes.

 

“Group hug!” She blew the candles off and wrapped her arms around her treasures.

 

“Mommy, I picked that rose from your garden. It’s the most beautiful one there.” Ji Young said proudly.

 

“Mommy, I made this big big big card for you!” Yoo Jin butted in, not wanting to be left out.

 

“Mommy, I helped Daddy out to cook this breakfast for you.” Ji Yoo announced, not wanting to be overshadowed his twin.

 

“Chinja? Aigoo~ My babies are very sweet and as a thank you, I will give all of you a gift. But first close your eyes. Do not peek!” She said and her three sons obliged, closing their eyes. One by one, she kissed their foreheads and gave them each a warm hug. “Thank you very much, Mommy is very happy because of the three of you~”

 

The boys opened their eyes and showed their toothy grins at Yoona. Yoona's eyes shone with bliss as she smiled at her sons.

 

“Alrights. Kids, it’s time for Mommy to eat. You can now go play in your room.” Jiyong said as he ushered his children out of his bedroom,

 

“But Daddy I want to eat with Mommy!” Ji Young said pouting.

 

“Daddy will buy you a new toy later if you behave now. Okay?”

 

“Jeongmalyo?”

 

“Promise.” He said showing his pinky.

 

“Thank you Daddy!” He nodded, locking his pinky with his Dad. “Hyung, Daddy is going to buy me a new toy.” The young boy boasted to his older brothers as he skipped away from his parents' room.

 

“Finally we're alone~” he heaved a sigh of relief and walked towards Yoona who was eating her breakfast. “How is it?” He asked her skeptically. “I know the toast is a little burnt, the eggs, well not as sunny side up as it should be and the pancakes, it's a bit crunchy than it should be, if you know what I mean. The only thing I'm sure that is good is the fresh orange juice.” He answered his own questions while looking at her.

 

“No it’s perfect, everything is perfect. I could not ask for more.” She replied as tears started to blur her vision.

 

Jiyong joined her in the bed and hugged her. “Don’t cry. The kids might think I made you cry on your birthday.” He nonetheless.

 

“Pabo.” she pouted and hit his chest. "I love you..."

 

“And I love you too.” He smiled, pulling her into another hug.

 

“Ji?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Let’s stay like this for awhile.” Yoona whispered as she tightened her hug around her husband, as though her whole life depended on it.

 

✺✺✺✺✺

 

Jiyong was all set for his surprise for Yoona on their 7th wedding anniversary. It was going to be a romantic dinner date where he had booked the entire restaurant for them. All her favourite food will be served and there will be candles surrounding the whole place with a grand piano in the middle. Everything is perfect - his suit, the gift, the weather. He even asked his best friend, Dong Youngbae to babysit his three son for this special occasion just so that they could spend some quality time together. They had never been on a dinner date alone ever since the twins were born. And that, was 6 years ago.

 

“Kwon Jiyong don’t be nervous, it’s not like you're going to propose to her again.” He mumbled to himself, trying to calm down.

 

Just then, he received a text message.

 

/Yeobo, I’m on my way now./

 

After reading her message, he started to pace back and forth, feeling nervous. He breathed in and out until he was able to stay still in his seat. After 30 minutes, Yoona came in with a simple black dress, her hair in a loose bun and with minimal make up. She was smiling widely but then she stopped in her steps. She looked back and motioned someone to come inside. Another lady was with her.

 

“Ji, I'm sorry for letting you wait, where are the kids? Oh, and I brought Fany along. She just came back from the states.” She said, looking around the place for her children.

 

“I ask Youngbae to babysit them so that we can have our dinner date. Alone.” Jiyong replied, not caring whether he sounded too harsh to Tiffany.

 

“Yoong, looks like it’s a private dinner. I guess I’ll be going first...” Tiffany said, sensing her unwanted presence from Ji Yong.

 

“No, it's fine. Right yeobo?” Yoona said, indifferent to the look her husband was giving her.

 

“Okay...” Jiyong sighed.

 

“Thanks. Fany-ah sit here, we need some catching up. You’ve been away for such a long time!” Yoona exclaimed, not noticing the tension in the air.

 

Dinner went on smoothly. For Yoona and Tiffany. They were chatting like the old days while Jiyong was left unnoticed, except for some side comments he put in throughout their conversation. All his preparations went down the drain - his perfect dinner date became a catch up dinner with an old friend.

 

“Fany-ah, if you're still looking for a place to stay, you can stay in our house.” Yoona suggested.

 

“Yoongie, thanks for the offer but I can stay in the hotel. No worries.” Tiffany tried to refuse her proposal politely but Yoona was very stubborn.

 

“I'm hurt Fany. You would rather stay in a hotel, spending more money, rather than staying with us to catch up with our lives? Ji, tell her to stay in our place.” She said looking at Tiffany and Jiyong, who looked like they had eaten something rotten.

 

With Yoona’s persuasion, Tiffany finally agreed to stay in their house for the time being but she told them that she would move in tomorrow since she needed to pack her things first. After their dinner, they dropped Tiffany in her hotel and picked up the kids from Youngbae’s house. The drive from the hotel to Youngbae’s house was like a torture for Jiyong where Yoona kept talking about Tiffany.

 

“Do you know what day today is?” Jiyong finally managed to say something.

 

“It's our anniversary,” Yoona replied nonchalantly.

 

“It's not just our anniversary, it's also our first dinner date ALONE after 6 years.” He said, controlling his anger.

 

“Well, you didn’t tell me beforehand that it's supposed to be a dinner for both of us only.” She shot back.

 

“How can I tell you when it’s a SURPRISE dinner date for two?” Jiyong blurted, trying to calm himself down. It's their anniversary and he didn’t want to end up having a fight with her.

 

“Look, I'm sorry. It's my mistake. I should have told you.” He gave a sigh, giving in to her as he reached for her hands.

 

“I'm sorry too... It's just that I haven’t seen Fany for 7 years.” She explained, holding his hands tighter.

 

✺✺✺✺✺

 

Tiffany had been living with them for almost a month now and within that month she knew something was wrong with her friend. Yoona started to act weird towards her husband and she always wanted her to spend every occasion with them. Today, is not an exception.

 

Yoona had planned a camping trip with the whole family to celebrate Jiyong’s birthday. Everyone was ready to go when she sent a message to Jiyong, saying she would meet them there because an urgent matter came up in her office. Although he was displeased with what his wife was doing, he still followed her wishes.

 

They are now in the campsite, setting everything up; preparing the food and pitching the tent. The kids were busy playing around while Jiyong was busy with the tent and Tiffany prepared the food. From an outsider's point of view, they were a happy family. Hence, when another family came and pitch their tent near their area, they couldn’t help but admired about how beautiful and perfect their family were.

"Good afternoon, we're the Lee family." The newly arrived family greeted them.

"Oh, good afternoon too, we're the Kwon family." Jiyong welcomed them.

 

"Your wife is very beautiful and your kids are all charming." Mrs. Lee complimented.

 

"Thank you, but I'm just a family friend of the Kwons. Mrs. Kwon will be here shortly." Tiffany corrected them politely.

"I'm sorry, I thought you're his wife. Anyway, enjoy your camping trip and if you need anything, feel free to tell us okays."

"Enjoy your camping also."

After the Lee family left, an awkward silence engulfed Jiyong and Tiffany. Well mostly on Jiyong's part. He knew about Tiffany's feeling for him, that was the reason why he was never comfortable with her around but because of yoona's stubbornness, he allowed her to stay with them.

"Yah Kwon Jiyong, if you're still thinking about my confession 10 years ago, don't worry, I moved on already." Tiffany decided to break the awkward silence.

"Chinja? I was worried that you still feel the same way and you know how much I love Yoona..." Jiyong was clearly relieved by her words.

"Yah, don't think too highly of yourself Kwon. Besides, my boyfriend is much taller and handsome than you." She remarked, teasing him about his height.

"Yah Hwang Miyoung, are you making fun of me?"

"Nope, I'm just stating the obvious. But seriously Ji, I think there is something wrong with Yoona."

"Now that you mention it, she is acting distant towards me and it's like she is pushing me to you."

"We'll need to find out what’s going on."

 

✺✺✺✺✺

 

A week later, Yoona was sitting alone at the waiting area of the hospital, patiently waiting for her turn. She received a call from her doctor that a specialist for her illness had arrived from the state