PART TWO OF THREE

On the following morning, Hyosung opened her eyes to a glowing room. Sunlight reflected off the multicolored crystals of Yongguk’s night lamp, eliciting rays of light across the ceiling and walls in abundant hues of pink, red, blue, green, and yellow. Shadows in the room were few and far between and she preferred it that way. She simply could not stand being in a dark room and thus, she could not sleep a wink without a night lamp.

Yongguk knew her too well. He had kept the last birthday gift she bought for him, a multicolored night lamp representing the respective colors of each member in B.A.P., in the storage room, but brought it out the night before upon her request. She had woken up near midnight, well aware that the room was far too dark and full of shadows for her to slumber on. In short, she screamed for his help and he complied. Of course, Yongguk was the most sensitive to her wants and needs; accommodating her was as natural as breathing to him.

The corners of her lips curled into a satisfied grin before she snuggled further into her pillow. She didn’t need to worry about being alone any longer. She was living with B.A.P. again.

“My boys,” Hyosung breathed from under her covers.

She would never get tired of calling them that. Although it had been three years since she last saw the boys, she never stopped thinking about them. She loved all of them, quirks and all. Gukkie and his stoic expressions. Himchannie and his secret obsession with motherly women. JaeJae and his sharp tongue. Uppie and his swift mood swings. Jello and his bountiful bounds of aegyo. And Daehyun.

Hyosung flushed pink before burrowing her face into her pillow. Living with Daehyun again was something close to a dream come true for her. She had missed inhaling his musky scent, exhaling his name, and sighing in the protection of his sturdy arms. Thoughts of him invaded her mind every five seconds and if that was not enough, she had memorized every single one of his eccentricities.

Daehyun and his mysterious mask. Daehyun and his insatiable appetite for cheesecake. Daehyun and his hauntingly beautiful singing voice. Daehyun and his penetrating gaze. Daehyun and his luscious lips, a rare sight to see unless his face was unmasked. Daehyun, Daehyun, Daehyun…

Would it be safe to say that she loved him? In that “particular” way? She giggled at the prospect of being “in love” with such a handsome and steadfast Dongsaeng.

True, even when she last lived with B.A.P., Daehyun spoke very little to her and he rarely looked her in the eye. His bedroom, once directly across from hers in the upstairs hall, held mysteries that naturally lured her out of her room whenever he managed to step out. Their encounters were less than momentous, though; he would not even utter a greeting to her as he slipped past her to descend the stairs. However, those few fleeting seconds of seeing him out and about were enough to stir within her an obsession to see him every morning of every day.

For six years straight, she began her mornings with greeting Daehyun and while she received no greeting in return, she noticed that he was affectionate toward her in other ways. When she broke up with her first boyfriend, he was the first to comfort her with a hug. He sat beside her for hours as she spoke to him about her day. He sang her songs whenever she requested. There was a time when the seven of them were watching a horror movie and Daehyun held her throughout the night so that she would not be afraid.

Now, this was not to say that Hyosung was “in love” with him, but she certainly believed that she was. Therefore, when she had arrived at the new B.A.P. Base, as she liked to call it, she was more than happy to tend to her handsome and mysterious Dongsaeng. They had called to ask for her help, after all, not some random stranger.

“Noona!” A voice roared from the other side of her bedroom door. She flinched as she snapped out of her reverie, then frowned. There was only one person that annoying voice belonged to.

“Aigoo, Himchannie…” Hyosung groaned, rising from her weeping pillow. I’m going to miss you, too, she lamented as she gave her pillow a . She threw the door a scathing glare. “What do you want, Kim Himchan?”

“Gukkie wants to see you!”

Hyosung’s frown immediately flipped upside down. “He does?”

“Daehyun, too.”

Daehyun… too? Her eyes widened. Daehyun wanted to see her. Jung freaking Daehyun. Her heart leaped in anticipation.

“Just one minute, Himchan! I’m going to freshen up.”

Flinging her blanket away from her, Hyosung bounced out of bed and into the bathroom she shared with the Shim sisters. Upon their first encounter, she could tell that the stiff older one did not seem to like her much and the younger one barely tolerated her existence. As long as they stayed out of her way, she could really care less about them.

She brushed her teeth, washed her face, glossed her lips, and pulled on a warm sweater over her pink Victoria Secret pajamas. She glanced at herself in the mirror to see a near-flawless, barefaced beauty staring back at her.

She smiled. She was finally ready.

Humming nervously, Hyosung swung open her bedroom door and bounded down the stairs. Daehyun wanted to see her, which meant one of two things. Either he needed her to check his wound (likely) or he was going to confess to her (less likely, but not impossible). Or it could be something else entirely. A girl could only wish for the best and the best was what Hyosung definitely hoped for.

When she entered the kitchen, an unwelcome sight met her eyes. Everyone was at the dinner table, eating breakfast, but that was not what made her stomach churn with fury.

The sisters were there, eating breakfast with the rest of them. And both of them were sitting on either side of her beloved Dongsaeng, who was eating without his mask! Hyosung pursed her lips before settling down in the empty seat beside Zelo. In front of her was a steaming bowl of kongnamulguk*, notably her favorite dish beside haemul kalguksu**, and a set of side dishes to compliment the meal.

(*Kongnamulguk is a typical everyday soup consisting of soybean sprout, green onions, anchovy and kelp broth, and a dash of pepper flakes. This soup is not only perfect for every day, but also the common cold and hangover. **Haemul kalguksu is a seafood noodle soup consisting of hand-kneaded and knife-cut wheat noodles, a variety of clams, shrimps, and oysters, and anchovy broth. This soup usually eaten during the summer.)

Why are they here? She thought to herself, barely able to keep facial expressions from souring. Don’t they have somewhere else to be, like, NOT here?

“Good morning, Noona,” Youngjae called from the other side of the table. “How is your morning so far?”

She grunted in response.

“Youngjae, she just woke up. Cut her some slack, will you?” Yongguk growled.

The younger threw up his hands in surrender. “Hey, I’m just trying to make some conversation here.”

As Yongguk and Youngjae continued to bicker back and forth, Hyosung picked up her spoon and dipped it into the steaming broth. She took a careful sip, then almost gasped in surprise. It was good. The broth was good. She didn’t dare say it, but it was probably better than her mother’s.

Maybe Jungmi isn’t all too bad, if she can cook this well, Hyosung mused as she glanced up at the older sister, ready to compliment her for the dish. However, she stopped when she saw something that made her stomach twist.

Jungmi fed Daehyun a piece of kalbi*… with her own chopsticks. While Hyosung was an advocate for sharing and caring, she didn’t want Jungmi sharing or caring for Daehyun. Who did she think she was? Hyosung gripped onto her own set of chopsticks and envisioned stabbing them into the girl’s hand.

(*Kalbi is Korean short ribs, a dish common in Korean BBQ restaurants in America.)

“Noona, are you okay?” Zelo whispered beside her as he eyed her clenched fist.

“Does it look like I’m okay?” She muttered.

“No, but…”

“Just eat your food, Jello-yah. Noona is fine.”

She took another begrudging sip of her soup and couldn’t help in response. Perhaps she could put her irritation aside for at least ten minutes. Jungmi might be a stiff, but she was a great cook. Hyosung had to admit that.

“So,” Himchan began with a wide grin. “School is starting soon. Should we start buying school supplies for Youngmi and the boys?”

“Youngmi and the boys?” Hyosung asked with a tight smile. “What are you talking about, Himchan? What does school have to do with Youngmi?”

“Youngmi is the same age as Jongup, Noona,” Yongguk explained gruffly. “I spoke to the principal last week on my way to TS Night Club and he said that it is alright for her to join Jongup on her way to school, as long as I list myself as her guardian. I have an application that she can fill out for now.”

“Guardian?” Hyosung shrieked. This was not good. If he placed himself as Youngmi’s guardian, it would mean that the girls would be living with B.A.P. until the girl was of age to leave!

The boys and sisters stopped eating to stare at Hyosung in unison. She blinked back at them, finally aware that she had lost a grip on her composure.

“Is there something wrong with that, Noona?” Himchan inquired with his mouth full with bean sprouts.

Hyosung looked from Yongguk to the sisters and back again. She could not believe her eyes, but was he gazing at them with a fatherly expression? Or any expression at all? To think that Yongguk once had feelings for her made her sick to the stomach if he was going to redirect his affections so quickly! She cleared before saying, “Himchan, I thought you said that Yongguk and Daehyun wanted to see me? Why don’t we talk about that, hm?”

“Oh, right.” Himchan’s smile faltered a bit. “That’s something minor, nothing to worry about—”

“What do you mean, Kim Himchan?” Yongguk interjected. “When did I say I wanted to see her?”

“Gukkie—”

“Don’t ‘Gukkie’ me!”

“—she wasn’t waking up! So, I had to get her downstairs somehow!”

Hyosung giggled when Yongguk smacked Himchan on the back of his head. Finally, the right atmosphere returned to the table. There was no need to talk about such trivial things like guardianship when her needs were much more important.

“You idiot! If she wanted to sleep longer, then you should have let her!”

“It’s just that Jungmi made breakfast especially for her and—”

“It’s always ‘Jungmi’ this and ‘Jungmi’ that with you! Are you in love with her or something?”

Himchan’s cheeks flushed red. “What? No, I’m not!”

“Hyung, can you shut up, please?” Daehyun mumbled through his mask. “We’re trying to eat here.”

“But, Daehyun—!”

“I think that’s enough, Himchannie,” Hyosung mused. “We don’t want to disturb those who are eating.”

“Just let me talk, alright?” Himchan huffed before turning to Hyosung. “Noona, there’s a reason why I woke you up today, I promise.”

“It wasn’t to tell me how beautiful I am without make-up?” Hyosung asked while batting her eyes at him.

He pretended to retch at the side of the table. “Are you kidding me? Who would call you beautiful? Even a toad’s warts are more beautiful than your face!”

Oh, Himchan and his jokes, Hyosung thought to herself as she lifted a spoonful of broth to her lips. Jungmi cleared , startling the broth right out of Hyosung’s spoon. Hyosung stared at her food, irritation clouding her thoughts once more. Ten minutes was too gracious for the damn cook.

“Is there something wrong with your throat, Youngmi-ssi?”

“Yah, Ahjumma!” Youngmi snapped from across the table. “I’m Youngmi!”

“Oh, excuse me. Sungmi-ssi?”

“Her name is Jungmi, Noona,” Daehyun whispered. Hyosung felt heat rise in at the tenderness in his voice.

“Okay, Jungmi-ssi. Is there something wrong with your throat?”

“No, there’s nothing wrong with my throat,” Jungmi replied rigidly.

There she was, being a stiff again. Was there really no end to her inflexibility? Hyosung really hated girls like her. Like, really.

“So, what do you want?”

“May I ask you something?”

“Yes, you may.”

“I understand that…” Jungmi paused before inhaling a shaky breath. “I understand that we got off on the wrong foot.”

“Yes, we did.”

“I would like to apologize for that.”

Hyosung almost felt pity for her. Almost. The girl was basically groveling for her forgiveness.

“Apologize? For what, exactly?”

“I understand that you are very important to the boys and I have made your first visit to them quite unpleasant.”

“‘Quite unpleasant’ is an understatement, my dear,” Hyosung muttered. She stuffed an egg roll in , aware of Yongguk’s drilling stare. Gosh, even her egg rolls were good. They were good enough for Hyosung to take back her words, but she did not dare. Jungmi was not worth complimenting.

“Noona…” Jongup murmured as he stared at Hyosung with wide, disbelieving eyes.

Zelo tugged on the sleeve of her sweater. She swatted his hand away.

“I’m sorry?” Jungmi inquired softly.

“What you said is an understatement, little girl. My first visit wasn’t ‘quite unpleasant,’ it was downright horrible. And yes, you contributed a lot to that.”

Jungmi placed her chopsticks on the table. “Look here, Hyosung-ssi. Ever since you arrived at this home, I have done everything I could to make your stay comfortable. If you haven’t noticed, I cleaned your room this morning before you woke up. I cooked the food you are eating right now. I am going to wash your dishes after you finish your food!”

Hyosung examined one of her cuticles; it was definitely time for a manicure. “And? What do you expect me to say?”

“‘Thank you’ would be nice!”

“You don’t deserve a ‘thank you.’”

“You know, I knew that there was something wrong with you, the minute you walked in.”

Hyosung pushed her palms on the table and stood up with a smirk. “Oh, yeah? And what is that?”

Jungmi followed suit with a snarl, her face already beet-red with fury. “You parade around in skin-tight clothing, thinking that you exude some form of elegance, when you really don’t, and you expect people to cater to your every whim. You’re crass, pompous, and vindictive, so much so that I don’t really care about whether or not you have a connection with the boys. I could care less about the memories you have with them, or if you remember how many scars are on their bodies, or if one of them had their first kiss with you! You think that since you were a part of their past, their future is set with you, don’t you?”

“Jungmi,” Himchan interjected. “There’s no need for you to be so harsh—”

Hyosung narrowed her eyes at Jungmi. “How dare you speak that way to me, you little insect. I think I look good in skin-tight clothing. Just because your looks are average at best, that shouldn’t give you a reason to hate on my flawless complexion. You have no idea what I have been through with these boys or the price I had to pay for leaving them. I have every right to demand their assistance and loyalty because I was their first for everything. I gave them their first home, their first jobs, their first cooking experiences, and yes, for a few of them, even their first kisses! Of course, their future is set with me. Why wouldn’t it be? Without me, they would be hopeless! Every single one of them knows this.”

“Noona, that’s enough—” Yongguk pleaded.

“You know,” Jungmi growled as her chest rose and fell with each heavy breath she took. “I am sick and tired of dealing with women like you. Vixens will never understand how hopelessly annoying and worthless they are to the human race. They feel like they have the right to devour anything and everything in their path, as if doing so will change their ultimate demise.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“It’s because of you that men leave their wives. It’s because of you that families are broken. That doesn’t bother you?”

“Because of me?” Hyosung scoffed. “You must be thinking of someone else because I’m no .”

“You might as well be one.”

“What did you say?”

Silence ensued as Hyosung and Jungmi glared at each other with their fists clenched.

~:~:~:~:~

The boys were shocked. The Jungmi they knew, or the Jungmi they had known for the past few weeks, was, without a doubt, a sharp-tongued woman. However, they could not believe that she would, or could, insult someone. She was the type to simply state her point of view and watch everyone take a stab at each other.

Hyosung, on the other hand, was very well-versed in insults. She cursed often and would do so, even in everyday situations. But, this was not to say that Hyosung’s arguments were valid. The boys also could not believe that she had the audacity to say that each and every one of them would be hopeless without her. That, of course, was not true.

Youngmi stared at her sister. Was this what the green aura meant? Not jealousy, but loathing? Hatred? Perhaps the color of each aura was specific to its host. Perhaps a green aura could range from any emotion according to each person. Whatever the case, Jungmi was not herself. Much like the charcoal-hued aura that had constricted around Jongup not too long ago, Youngmi watched as the dark green aura thickened around her sister’s torso, twisting and engorging like a snake across her chest and around her waist. There had to be something that Jungmi was not telling her.

“How dare you,” Hyosung growled, breaking the silence. “You little .”

Youngmi and the boys gasped while Jungmi simply blinked. Then, an almost sinister smile lifted a corner of her lips. It was a smile cold enough to make Youngmi and the boys shiver with fright.

“Is that all you can say?” Jungmi asked slowly, as if to a five-year-old. “Is that all you have in your arsenal of Korean vocabulary? A thesaurus would help, you know.”

“Oh, shut up, will you? You’re beginning to give me a migraine,” Hyosung muttered as she stepped away from the table. She went to the kitchen to pour herself a glass of water.

“It’s not enough,” Jungmi continued from the table, “that women like you demand attention, embrace temptation, and disregard consideration for others. You target the weakest of men. You enjoy watching them writhe under your sadistic control. That’s why you want to stay with the boys, isn’t it? Because they cater to your every whim without any resistance? It must feel good to torture men that way.”

“That’s not it, Jungmi,” Himchan urged quietly. “Noona isn’t like that. She’s not a sadist or temptress or anything of the sort.”

“Oh, she’s not? I can take one look at her and see right through that skimpy façade. She’s a temptress, through and through.”

Hyosung whirled around and threw the glass of water at Jungmi. The latter ducked and covered her head with her arms. The glass smashed into the wall, its millions of pieces striking the exposed skin of Jungmi’s neck, face, arms, and hands.

For a moment, everyone stood dumbstruck at what just happened. Even Hyosung was silent. Jungmi slumped to the floor, bleeding from her many wounds. 

*****Hey, all! Part three of the update will be up by the end of this week! Go back a chapter, since this was (as of right now), a double update. 8.3.15 :)*****