Park Villa

“its your fault that we lose the villa’s cook.” taeyeon hit kangin’s head with her fist.

“I was just protecting me!” the eldest member of the Kim siblings defended himself. Truly he had undergone a minor fight with the cook, with both of them losing their tempers easily just because the cook won’t comply with kangin’s choice of food.

“if he only followed what I want, it’ll be easy between us.” kangin added.

“pabo, if only you didn’t pig out, nothing like that would have happened.” Taeyeon said through gritted teeth. She really cannot agree with kangin’s uncontrolled impatience and no sense of reason.

“you talk to me as if I’m not older.”

 “mwo, do you even act old?” Taeyeon blurted, hitting him again with another batch of her crumpled fist. “you’re a year ahead and there you are acting like an adolescent boy. pabo, pabo, pabo!”

Kangin, you’re lucky I am tired, or else I could have really pinned you down with my foot, she thought.

tiffany winced through every hits in the head her brother would receive.

“unni, don’t be too harsh.” She whispered, looking at her surroundings. There were guards surrounding the villa, and it will be embarrassing for her if they see the siblings having a fight.

“I am just emphasizing that its kangin’s fault.” Taeyeon said, matter-o-factly. “what now, can you even replace the cook huh?”

“I know, I know.” Kangin said as he shielded his legs from taeyeon’s kick. “I’m sorry, I’m really just protecting myself.”

“you’re protecting your temper.”

“unni, not so loud.” Tiffany reminded taeyeon.

The middle child of the kim family shook her head in disbelief. Even tiffany protects her brother so much that she would always deal with the conflicts alone.

“its your fault that I have to look for a replacement and if I don’t find one now, I’ll starve you to death.” She said, pointing a finger to kangin’s forehead.

“aigoo.” he whispered.

“tiffany, what are you still doing here?”

taeyeon looked at her sister, putting her hands beside her hips. “go to your room, now!”

“but unni.”

“NOW.”

“aish.” Tiffany’s hands formed a fist and stormed out of the room.

Taeyeon covered her ears from the loud shutting of the door that almost sent chandelier crystals bouncing in midair.

“okay.” She sighed, focusing at kangin. “now you tell me how do we find a new cook.”

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Private room, Seoul Hospital

leeteuk blinked open his eyes and found himself inside a large room of white ceilings and green walls.

“you’re awake!” eunhyuk placed his psp on the counter. Leeteuk scanned the room for other people and found no one was there except hyoyeon’s boyfriend.

“you stayed here?” he asked eunhyuk who appeared he didn’t have any sleep.

“ne.” eunhyuk smiled. “hyoyeon went home just a while ago to take a shower. She’ll be back within two hours I guess. You want breakfast?”

Eunhyuk pointed to an untouched breakfast tray at the table.

“sorry, I drank the milk already.” He continued, scratching his head. “but lunch will come I guess in five minutes.”

“no need, I’m not hungry.” Leeteuk said. He must have been asleep for about a whole day ever since he collapsed.

“I think I should be calling the nurse to tell that you’re awake.” Eunhyuk said. “and the doctor too.”

“I don’t want to see the doctor yet.” Leeteuk said.

He looked around the room and saw a three basket of fruits on the side table.

“your father by the way, visited you a while ago.” Eunhyuk said when leeteuk continued scanning the area. The latter turned to eunhyuk’s  direction and raised an eyebrow.

“really?”

“ne. but he headed out afterwards because he has some business to do I think. But he reminded me that you will have to undergo blood tests again.” eunhyuk said.

Leeteuk nodded and winced.

“are you okay?” eunhyuk stood up from his seat.

“I need a pain reliever.” Leeteuk said, raising a hand to touch his head. A metallic silver bracelet dropped immediately on his lap.

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Stone Fountain, Park Estate

Taeyeon’s POV

Aigoo…  how to get a new cook. I’ve been searching in the net for hours and no one seems best to qualify, making me irritable with the added factor of lack of sleep.  If only kangin’s temper really didn’t get into him that much, the guy is so unreasonable, really. And tiffany, getting in the way so I wouldn’t scare off kangin that badly, kind of gets in my nerves too. If only they know how difficult it is to get a replacement.

Talking over the incident to Mister Park just made him laugh.

“you’re stressing yourself too much, taeyeon ssi, its easy to get a cook, leave it to me.” he said.

That old man…  am I really stressing myself too much? Maybe I’m too preoccupied with doing my responsibilities.

I stared at the red bricked floor of the stone fountain area, thinking of someone as a good replacement. Who can it be… I have plenty of friends back at the slums, all seem to want to have a good life like me. but ironically, a  villa cook must know every cuisine other than local street dishes.

I watched my feet sway above the ground when someone blindfolded me with bare hands.

“mwo?”

“guess who.” Said a voice. It was an adolescent like male voice and the hands resemble a child’s.

“I’m giving you a clue.” Said another voice. It was a girl this time, sounded like doing an aegyo.

“am I thinking what I am thinking?”

I removed the hands, covering my eyes and squinted as the blurry view suddenly returned to normal.

Two people at least my height greeted me with a smile.

“AHHH! Wookie!” I shrieked. “sunny!”

“you always don’t like blindfolding do you?” wookie scratched his head. I raised both of my hands to the sides and bearhugged the two, which surprised them a lot.

“unni, why didn’t you tell us that you moved here?” sunny pouted when I yanked them free. I really couldn’t believe my eyes this time, the moment is like deceiving me. two of my greatest friends are actually here.

“mianhe, it was all of a sudden.” I blushed, easing myself. this is probably one of the happiest days of my life. “what are you doing here anyways? How come you know this place?”

Sunny and ryeowook looked at each other and grinned mischievously.

“what, am I missing out here?” I asked, startled.

“taengoo.” Ryeowook inhaled deep held both of my hands. “last night, there was a man who called me and that they are in need of a new cook. I thought he was on a prank but once he mentioned your name, I knew that I have to come here.”

Oh no… I know whose idea it is. Mister park, you are really one of a kind.

“wae, I can’t believe this.” I laughed, rubbing my cheek. “how about sunny? She just tagged along?”

“well, since wookie and I shared the same apartment, I volunteered myself to be his assistant.” She said proudly.

“wow.” I just said. I was so speechless, I wanted to say so many things but all of it seemed inappropriate. and all really bothered to leave out their food stall business just to be with me.

“the old man seemed to really know about you, huh?” ryeowook asked. “he even knew your bestfriends.”

Well, its all because of his sources. I cannot tell them that mister park have agents who could easily scan through our private profiles without us noticing.

“we have a little chit chat once in a while.” I lied. “so, can we go now? I’ll tour you around the villa.”

I tugged sunny’s hand and ryeowook’s.

“unni, let’s tour there.” Sunny pointed to the cream colored building on my right side.

It’s the manor.

“no, I think that’s not possible becau----“

Sunny and ryeowook raced themselves to the east entrance.

I was too late.

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Park Manor

Taeyeon’s POV

I just followed the two giddy people who toured themselves into the place where I myself even had no chance to go into. I cannot blame sunny and ryeowook though, this entire estate seemed to be an amusement park for them because of the wide area and structures.

“wow, paintings.” I heard ryeowook gushed.

The east entrance of the manor greeted us with rows of paintings that must have been handed down by centuries. Copies of ancient greek civilization, renaissance periods, Elizabethan, etc. compiled themselves according to dates. I was in awe too. And ryeowook and sunny have always were.

I watched them pass through the big kitchen area where ryeowook greeted some of the staff while sunny tagged me along to the music area upstairs. The east stairs resembled a Hogwarts stair that appeared crooked as we head up.

“are you still going to the same school?” I asked sunny. The three of us were formerly classmates in tourism when I dropped off the second semester because of my very own financial crisis.

“ ne, now that we have a better job it’ll be easy to go to school.” sunny confessed. “and to think that we will be together again.”

“aww.”

“just be reminded that not all of the people here are pleasant.” I warned her. leeteuk’s face immediately popped into my mind as I said it.

“who?” sunny looked at me with a puzzled look on the face.

“music area.” I pointed, changing the topic.

Sunny and I gaped at the sight of the place. Musical instruments of all kind were placed according to their classification gathered by a white grand piano at the corner which really amused my eyes.

“very classical.” Sunny said while gazing at the red carpeted floor and cream walls with hanged frame pictures of different musicians of the period. I smiled at the pictures of modern kpop artists that appeared very visible because of the fashion statements of the era nowadays.

“did you know that ryeowook recently won in the singing competition at our school?” sunny blurted as we took a seat at the piano stool.

“jinja?”

“ne.” sunny said. “it’s a shame that you weren’t there, you might have won in the female category.”

“I really haven’t sung for a while.” I mused, stretching my feet. I don’t know why people loved my voice, they always said that it sounded so beautifully everytime I sing.

“what’s that door heading to?” sunny’s head turned to the direction of a small white door to our left side.

I shrugged.

“I don’t know, I’ve never been here.” I confessed.

Sunny’s smile almost reached up to her ears.

“let’s look at it. shall we?”

“no way, I don’t think that’s a good idea.” I said.

“oh, c’mon unni, just this once.” Sunny pulled my hand.

----------------------

“are you really sure that you want to head home?” hyoyeon asked leeteuk as the two siblings headed in their way to the mansion. Leeteuk had checked himself out of the hospital after undergoing blood tests from doctor song. Test results will be discussed again after the exam.

Mister Park’s only son didn’t reply and focused himself instead to the view outside the car.

“we have ice here, do you want to treat those?” hyoyeon pointed to the purple blotches on leeteuk’s arm. The marks have appeared due to the injection.

“no need.” Leeteuk said.

“good thing the drive here to the manor is only fifteen minutes, you can rest easily when we get home.” hyoyeon smiled, looking at him. “you’ll just call me when you need help, okay? Eunhyuk and I have a date but you can always call me anytime.”

Leeteuk sighed. He didn’t want himself being entangled with his sister’s affairs.

“go ahead, I can watch over myself.” he mumbled.

“if you say so.” Hyoyeon winked.

Leeteuk rested his head on the carseat and closed his eyes.

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Leeteuk’s room, Park Manor

Taeyeon’s pov

“eh… this is a big place!” sunny’s eyes goggled to the dark Victorian room that greeted us as we stepped from the music room to this area.

“ I don’t think that we should be here.” I said. the scene creeps me out, like the horror settings of bloody red curtains hanging at the ceiling, a king sized poster bed with gold and black ts, a black furry bear carpet, Victorian chairs. There were many doors surrounding the area. We were probably inside a bedroom of someone.

“look unni, there’s a walk in closet.” Sunny invited me.

“sunny, we should go.”

“aigoo, were already here, what’s to miss out.” Sunny held my hand and tugged me inside.

“where’s ryeowook?” I asked as sunny and I walked in this huge closet with different clothes hanged neatly to the sides.

“must be lost.” Sunny joked.

Whoever owned this room must have bestowed upon himself an obsessive compulsive disorder. And must have fantasized watching horror movies. I glided my hands at the warm fabrics of the room owner’s clothes and stared in fascination to the branded stuffs surrounding it. shoes, belts, used wallets, shades, all seemed to have a brand marked in it.

I stopped checking when I found my hand grasping a familiar looking apple colored v-neck shirt that lay a top at the second row of wardrobes.

“omo.” I mouthed. This room must have belonged to----

“park jungsu.” Sunny blurted the name aloud as she stared at the picture frame she retrieved from the drawer.

I knew it. There is only one Park family member who would always love the darkness in an area after all. I stole the picture from sunny’s hand.

“sunny, you shouldn’t touch this.” I said. but I immediately stopped when I saw leeteuk in the picture lying his head on a shoulder of a really beautiful girl.

“this must be his girlfriend.” Sunny squeezed in his head and stared at it too.

I can’t stop myself but to divulge into more information. The picture appeared slightly tattered with stains, probably water stains? Or are this dried tears? And the girl. She really looked so pretty, and I doubt that I would look as pleasant if I stand in with her.

“that picture really looked old.” Sunny added. “like five or six years ago.”

I squatted on the floor and placed the frame next to the other pictures.

“should I be looking for another?” I asked myself aloud. I swarmed my hands through piles of more pictures. Leeteuk was always with the girl on the picture, on different settings, on different places. And they appeared… so happy. Sometimes, I would always think what leeteuk would look like if his eyebrows aren’t always creased.

“who’s this park jungsu anyway?” sunny asked.

“the only son of mister park.” I said.

“where is he?”

I get tired easily of squatting down the floor so I just closed the drawer and stood up.

“in the hospital, I think.” I said. I hope leeteuk wouldn’t notice the slight changed arrangement of his pictures.

“why?he’s sick?”

I shrugged.

“inborn sickness.” I said, referring to his heart condition.

“what a pity.” Sunny whispered. “he must have felt bad all the time.”

“tell me all about it.” I said, thinking about it too.

Now to think about it…Oh no, I totally forgot about him after kangin’s incident with the cook.

“you want to come to the hospital with me?” I asked sunny. It would be a long story if I tell her what happened to leeteuk, but I knew my friend would always understand the situation I’m in.

“we’re visiting him?” sunny clapped her hands together. “that’ll be great, I’ll introduce myself.”

“he’s not really particular with meeting persons.” I smiled as we walked out of the closet.

“oh wait, look at that.” sunny looked herself from the full length mirror next to leeteuk’s plasma screen tv.

“yah, sunny, we have to go, he must be awake right now.” I said, motioning her to slow down.

“then better, we can explore more of his room.” my friend smiled.

---------------------

Park Manor

“won’t you eat for awhile?” hyoyeon called out on leeteuk as the latter headed for the east entrance.

“I’m not hungry.” Leeteuk waved out his hand to shush out his sister.

“araso, just beep in the cook when you need food. “ hyoyeon said as her eyes followed him upstairs.

“ I will.”

“be careful.” She added.

Leeteuk nodded and headed towards the music room.

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Leeteuk’s room, Park Manor

Taeyeon’s pov

“sunny.” I tugged my friend’s hand. “ I will be in need of explanation once I reach there so we have to be quick.”

“I wonder if he has siblings, maybe we can try their clothes while they’re away, huh?” sunny said, excitedly. “just for fun, unni.”

Aigoo…I really don’t like sunny’s habits of changing the topics. And the aegyo kills me.

“aish, sunny lets go.”

“you’re such a party pooper.” Sunny pouted when I forced her to forward near the tiny door to the music room. I placed my hand on the golden knob when the door automatically opened right in front of me.

Leeteuk stared at us as if seeing burglars inside his room.

“ i am definitely in need of explanation.” I blurted, staring him too in shock.

Omona…

“can you please leave the two of us here?” leeteuk told sunny.

“ah, ne.” sunny nodded and headed for the door. “mianhe.” She mumbled.

Leeteuk waited as sunny closed the door shut. I couldn’t move, as if my feet were glued to the ground.

“like in the movies.” I said, breathing deeply. “I can explain.”

“have you been told that you’re not allowed to be in this room?” leeteuk said.

What’s with the stare, aish.

“ne.” I said, avoiding his gaze. “it was an accident, really. Sunny and I were just---“

“in the music room and you went here.” Leeteuk finished the words for me.

“exactly.” I said, raising my index finger.

Leeteuk sighed and sat down at the foot of his bed.

“you saw anything?” he asked, crossing his legs.

“I saw the cigarettes.” I lied. He must be referring to the pictures in his drawer.

“gosh, you should be stopping collecting those items from now on.” I continued. I almost exaggerated myself on that part.

“really?”

“y-yeah.” I said, raising my head up.

Leeteuk raised his eyebrows.

“you owe me one million, you almost had my heart attacked, you invaded my room and now you’re lying to me.” he said, calmly. “what are you planning to do next?”

“aigoo, that’s so rude of you.” I said. I could feel my hot blood evaporating through the pores of my skin.

He’s definitely like his sister who doesn’t understand what an accident means.

“how will I sound rude if everything is true at the first place?” he said.

“fine.” I said. “then if you really make those things accountable, then I am putting myself at fault.”

“you really think that these things are forgivable miss kim?” leeteuk looked at his lap.

“I am putting myself accountable, what else do you want?” i said airily.

“you’re not making yourself accountable. You cannot even mention to me that you’re sorry.”

“I—“ I opened my mouth to fire back but I quickly shut it down. I guess he was right.

“gotcha.” He sighed.

Leeteuk removed his jacket as I crossed my arms in fury. There I noticed a glitter in small part on his right wrist from the small light that pierced through his window.

My butterfly charm bracelet!

Leeteuk saw me looking at the metallic object.

“why are you wearing that??” I asked, startled.

“its not your business to know.” Leeteuk looked at me innocently.

“aish.”

how do I get the bracelet back. I cannot say that its mine. He would have been asking why I got the bracelet trapped in his palm.

“doesn’t fit you well.” I mumbled sarcastically. The bracelet was a gift from tiffany and it really would make me feel bad if I don’t get it back. Think kim taeyeon, think!

I bit my lip as I pin myself to the wall, thinking hard.

“you look like you’re planning something.” Leeteuk noticed.

“shh..” I said, shushing him. This isn’t the right time to talk.

Leeteuk shrugged and stood up.

“I’m leaving.” I finalized as he walked towards me. I cannot be caught right now, I’ll just get the bracelet next time. Maybe when he’s not around this room. good thing, sunny and I found this place by accident.

“wait.” Leeteuk held his hand up.

“what?”

Leeteuk removed the bracelet from his wrist and raised the metallic object in front of my face.

“is this yours?” he asked.

It felt like my heart stopped as I saw my precious material glittering before my eyes.

how did he know?

“are you kidding me, how will that thing belong to me.” I lied, shaking my head.

Leeteuk sighed, held my hand and placed the object in my palm. The effect of his fingers touching my skin probably both sent us thinking. It felt exactly the same when we had our fingers intertwined back at the hospital.

“you’re really bad at lying.” He said as I put the bracelet to my pocket.

“d-duh. You’re, you’re  just quick-witted to realize that.” I said, raising my chin. “I’m leaving.”

I stormed into the tiny door and held the knob open.

“did you by chance----“

“held your hand? no way.” I said as I walked out.

And without me realizing it, I saw leeteuk smiling at me before the door closed.

I think I just answered his question.