JOJO COSPLAY CAFE
PROLOGUE PART I: SOMETHING WE CALL FAMILY  

{Narreted by Onew}

My grandpa was such a sweet and caring person, he was always with a big smile on his face, and even though he spent a lot of years really sick that never made he lose his positive attitude to face life. To our family he always was the strongest among us, and even when he had to be admitted to the hospital in a critical state we really thought he has going to make it through as always… but that one time he didn’t make it. It was a rainy day when my beloved grandfather passed away, and even though it was raining really hard there was so many people at his funeral that anyone just by looking at it could imagine how great of a person he used to be. Everyone was trying to look cheerful, because we all knew he wouldn’t want to see people sad because of something like this, but there were some people who couldn’t put a smile to their face even though they knew they should, like my cousin Mary. She was sobbing so hard that even our grandma was consoling her. But actually I could understand her feelings, we both were very close to him, and the thought of never seeing him again was really depressing. So, I just sat beside her and started to pat her back, and then our grandma left her under my care and went to talk to some of our grandpa friends.

“Why did he have to die oppa, why? He had made it thought for all this years already… I was certain he would live a lot longer.” Mary asked to me in a low tone, while letting her head rest on my shoulder trying to calm herself a little.

“Mary, our grandpa health was really frail and even so he was able to live for more than ten years after he got sick, he was a fighter, but even someone like him has to rest someday. Now he is not suffering anymore, and I’m sure he is still watching over us, he would never leave us alone. He wouldn’t like to see you crying so much.” I lifted her chin to make her look me in the eyes and then smiled at her with my best ‘everything is going to be okay’ kind of smile. Mary smiled back at me. And then, I pinched her nose.

“OUCH!” She screamed. “OPPAAA, STOP IT YOU BABO!” She said, and then I let her nose go and ran far away from her, and soon she was after me and trying to hit me, but of course I was faster, Mary was never a good runner.

She forgot her worries and we played as when we were kids running after each other and laughing out loud for a bit of time, some people at the funeral even looked at us as if we were lacking on respect for our grandpa, but our grandma and parents smile reassured us that everything was okay, after all, that was the way our grandpa liked to see us, always happy and beside each other to give the other strength over at all the difficult times.

~ Two months later ~

“Mary, you can’t go like this.” I said, looking at my eccentric cousin, who was wearing decorative tights, some shorts and a shirt with a Pororo print.

“Why can’t I? I’m not the lawyer there. I can listen to my grandfather’s will with any outfit I like and you won’t make me change my mind Onew. I am who I am, and I am not some formal person.” She said confident, and I was really sure she really wouldn't change her mind so I just left a loud sight come out from my mouth.

“Aigoo, how can my dongsaeng be so cute and so pigheaded” I with a large smile while messing up her hair.

“LEE JIN KI, YOU ARE GOING TO PAY!”  She said to me and then jumped on me and started to make me tickles. Aish! She always attacks my weak point, what a heartless cousin.

“Okay… you… won… Mary. STOP IT!” I said while bursting into laugher, to what she just smiled and pinched my cheeks.

“I always win.” She said and grinned, turning her back to me to leave the room. “Let’s go oppa, or we will be late. If you behave I’ll buy you chicken on our way back.”

Wait… she said chicken, didn’t she? “I’M GOING MARY, I’M GOING! WAIT FOR ME.” I screamed anxiously and clapped my hands adding a big smile to my face. After all, since I will eat chicken later, what a great day this will be!

I went down the stairs overly excited thinking about my delicious chicken, just to find my cousin laughing at me by the door. “Okay you giant baby, I know you love chicken but please stop daydreaming and let’s go before the lawyer call to give us some lecture.” She said and took my hand to guide me to the car in the overly fast speed that she thought would be proper.

Mary and I are living together for a month already. My parents have been living on the USA for three years now and last month Mary’s parents decided to move there with our grandma, so, since neither of us wanted to leave Korea we stayed behind. As we both are only child’s we grew close since we were little and we both agree that we are the brother/sister we never had, so it’s really fun to share a house with her. Even though we are always teasing each other we really get along amazingly well, to the point that not even once in our lives we’ve had any argument.

The path to the lawyer’s office took a bit more of time that it should since there was a bit of traffic jam on the streets. Mary was already sulking, and I was almost like that too, even though I know that the lawyer will understand that we are late because of the traffic. Once we got to his building, we practically ran to the lawyer’s office, both of us were silent but I know Mary was just as nervous as I was. After all, since our parents where overseas we both would have to talk about their parts on the will, and it’s awkward to take care of such a serious business on our own since we both are so young.

The lawyer opened his door, bowed and then smiled at us “Come one in!” he said, and we bowed back and did as we were told. The layer was probably over 60. A shorty, bold and a bit chubby, but a really nice man, the kind of person with whom our grandpa used to get along, and I couldn’t help but to smile when I thought this to myself.

“Now that you are here let’s go right to the point, since I’m with the time short because we started this encounter a bit late. First of all, your grandfather’s money will basically go to your grandmother, but both of you as his grandsons will receive an allowance from some savings that he got specifically for this day. And your parents will get his houses money that he left for me to sell once he passed away and some stocks he had on the USA.  But, you both also will receive something else, a building. You can do what you like with it, sell it or do it whatever pleases you both, it’s already on your name. Is a place in Hongdae that your grandpa kept for a lot of years. I think it used to be a cafe or something.” He said. “You guys have to sign here, and here, and here, and here.” He pointed at a couple of places in some sheets, and we did as we were told and then he gave us copies of it and also some other documents.

“Here on this document is your allowance account number and papers, you just have to go to the bank and they will make a card for you guys for it. And here are the documents for the building, if you choose to sell it you can talk to me that I will help you guys for free since I was a big friend of your grandfather. And also you don’t have to worry that I’ll be sending your parents their documents, so you guys don’t need to bother with that” He looked at this watch with a troubled expression and then looked at us putting a smile on his face once again. “I’m sorry but I have another meeting now, I hope you guys won’t bother. We already settled everything here but if you have any doubts please feel free to call me. I’m sorry for rushing you guys. It was a pleasure to meet you. Your grandfather was a great person, the world lost a big human being with his death.” He smiled sadly, and then he opened his door and let us out of the room first and closed the door and bowed to us in goodbye, to what we bowed back and went out to leave the building.

Once we were inside my car I, that was still dazed by everything, said in an almost whispering tone to Mary “We got the cafe.” to what she mumbled to me in the same mesmerized way “Yeah, we got our grandfather’s biggest treasure, I still can believe it.”. And then, I started the car and took us back to our home.

Our grandfather was from a humble family and had to work really hard in order to accomplish the life he dreamt to his children. As our grandmother got pregnant really young, and our grandfather didn’t want to make his family go thought difficulties, he used everything he had as a guarantee and got himself a loan to invest in his own business, a cafe. At first things wasn’t as easy as he imagined but he didn’t give up, he continued to invest into his business and with the help of some friends and our grandfather's great sociability and entrepreneur abilities in two years that cafe became the most famous place in the Hongdae area, and our grandfather’s business grew to the point that he got to open other cafes with the same name not only in Korea but a couple even overseas. But then, as the years went by, someday he decided it was enough. Our grandfather was never a greedy man, and as his sons where with their own life set and he had money enough to live well with our grandmother he sell his rights to the branch and retired, but the only thing he still kept to him was that first place that started it all and that made all of his dreams possible, that one building that was now ours.