“Yeoboseyo?”

“Unnie?”

Hanna paused.  She looked at her phone, seriously contemplating on whether or not to hang up.  With great reluctance, Hanna pulled it back towards her ear and proceeded with the call.  She let out a resigned sigh and replied, “Neh.”

Amina heard the curt response and mentally cringed inside. She knew she deserved it.  It had been what?  Over two weeks since the blow-up incident.  She should have called sooner.  Would have called sooner, if she hadn’t been wallowing in the depths of her own hell or fighting with Youngbae.  All of that seemed so far away now.  She still couldn’t believe that she was going to marry him next week.

“It’s me… Mimi,” Amina replied lamely.  She felt nervous all of a sudden.  Thankfully, she was communicating the news to her cousin over the phone and not in person.  She couldn’t even begin to imagine the fury that Hanna was about to unleash once the news was delivered.

“Neh.”

“I just wanted to call and let you know…”  Amina took a deep breath.  “…that I’m getting married next week.”

Silence.

Amina glanced around the empty apartment and waited.

More silence.

“Unnie?”

“Do I know this person that you’re marrying? Or did you just pick up the first random stranger off the street that offered to stand in?”

“Unnie,” Amina stressed.  Hanna’s sarcasm could get overbearing at times. “I’m marrying Youngbae-sshi.”

“Youngbae-sshi?” came the sardonic reply.  Hanna scoffed lightly into the phone.

“Neh,” Amina answered, growing upset.  “Look, I know you don’t think highly of him.  And I know you don’t too highly of me either.  But we’re trying to work things out and I would appreciate it if you would…” 

Amina broke off.  Was this even worth it?  Her heart wasn’t in it.  But Youngbae’s plea on their way home last night replayed in her mind.  She took a calming breath and forced herself to start again.

“I would appreciate it if you came and witnessed the marriage.”

“You want me there?” 

Actually, Youngbae did but Amina didn’t point that out.  “Neh, I would like to have one member of my family there.”

“And it’s next week?  How’d you pull that one off?”

Amina swallowed.  “We’re scheduling an appointment at the courthouse and will have someone officiate it.”

“And then afterwards?”

“Then that’s it.”  Amina braced herself.

Hanna’s voice took on a sharp edge.  “That’s it!? What do you mean that’s it?  No wedding?  What?  Is he ashamed of you or something?  Or did you guys decide that going through the motions would be too much effort?”

“Unnie!” Amina spoke heatedly into the phone, her patience near gone.  “We’re not having the wedding, because I told him I didn’t want one. Okay?!”

“Mwuh?  Why not?”

Her cousin sounded appalled.  Amina shook her head.  “What do you mean ‘why not’?  Did you forget?  I just lost my father a couple of months ago.  I’m not having a wedding anytime this year.”

“So maybe next year?”

Amina rolled her eyes to the ceiling and let out an exasperated sigh.  “By then… it won’t even matter!  Marriage is marriage… wedding or not.  Besides, he’s not exactly the type of person that can have a publicized wedding anyway.  So this works out perfectly for us.”

“Well isn’t that just damn ideal!” Hanna muttered.  “Seriously, Mimi… I know you.  We played dress-up ever since you were four years old.  We always talked about weddings and marrying our prince charming.”

Amina felt the stirrings of something long gone.  Her tone came out more forcefully then she intended. “Well… I’m older now.  I don’t dress up.  And I don’t have any need for fancy dresses or big wedding celebrations.”

“But-“

“Just drop it, unnie.  You can be there if you want.  If you don’t, then that’s fine by me,” Amina curtly replied.  She knew she was being rude, but there was only so much of this Hanna that she could take in a day.  “Please tell your appa and umma the news.  I don’t want them to worry about me or the baby.”

“They don’t know about the baby.”

“Mwuh?”  Amina’s voice shook.  She heard Hanna take in a deep breath.

“I didn’t tell them,” Hanna confessed.  “After talking to Jiyongie, he made me realize I needed to sit on it for a bit before I told them.  And… lucky for you, my has been too busy at work to stop by and see them lately.”

Amina reeled from the news.

“But they need to be told eventually.  And I’m sure they’re going to want to see you and Youngbae-yah face to face.”

“Neh,” Amina replied, her mind racing head.  She her lips and started thinking out loud.  “I think it might be best if we told them soon.  I think… neh, even if they object.  I… I rather they know beforehand.  Before we get married.”

Hanna let out noncommittal sound.  “Finally!  Some common sense!” 

“Unnie…” Amina gritted.

Hanna sighed audibly into the phone.  “Look, I can arrange a dinner with them tomorrow night, if you guys can make it.  Usually appa has his Saturday schedules clear unless there’s a construction project that he has to be on-site for.  But usually, he’s home in time for dinner.  So will that work?” 

“I...I don’t know,” Amina replied, a little taken aback.  She wished she knew what Youngbae’s schedule was like or what he had planned.  But knowing how things were lately, he probably wouldn’t be free until later next week.  “I’ll call and ask Youngbae-sshi if he’s available.”

“Fine.  Just text if you guys can make it and I’ll set it up.”  Hanna rapidly tapped on her keyboard, her manicured nails clicking loudly through the other end of the line.  After a few seconds, she abruptly asked, “What are you doing the rest of today?”

Amina blinked.  She was about to hang up the phone was what she was about to do!  “Umm…”  She checked the clock above the stove.  12:35pm.  Perfect time for an afternoon nap.  “I was going to take a nap…” Amina trailed off lamely, wishing she had a better excuse.

“A nap? Ani…”

Amina grimaced.  She wished she had made something up because now she knew what was coming.

“…You can sleep some other time. You don’t come see me for almost two months after you arrive back home.  And when we do meet up, I find out that you’re pregnant and practically destitute.  Then you call me over two weeks later and tell me you’re getting married out of the blue!  At this rate, who knows what other mess you’ll get yourself into before we meet up again!”

Amina sighed.

“Ani… I’m not letting you off that easily,” Hanna smirked.  “Where are you at?”

“Where else?  I’m at home.”

“Yah!  I know… home.  Where is home?”

Amina shook her head and started pacing the length of the kitchen.  “Don’t you have to work today unnie?  You said so yourself.  You’ve been busy lately.”

Hanna let out a humorless half-laugh.  “As of right now, I’m the head around here.  So I can take off whenever I want to.  Now tell me where Youngbae-sshi’s apartment is, so I can see for myself what type of hovel he has you staying in.”

“Unnie, you’re such a snob,” Amina replied without heat.

Hanna laughed.

Amina felt herself grin against her will.  “Fine. You can come over.  But leave your claws and fangs at the door.”

The pictorials and designs were starting to blur before Youngbae’s eyes.  Him in all white.  Him in all black.  No shirt.  Fully covered.  Lying down.  Some of him staring straight into the camera.  Some showing his profile view only.  For the past hour, they had gone through so many different layouts, font changes, and stylizations for his album booklet and cover set that he didn’t feel motivated or engaged in the act any longer. 

No – that wasn’t it.  Who was he kidding?  His mind had been preoccupied ever since he left the apartment at five this morning.  And with great reluctance too.  Her body was soft and warm as it lay nestled against him.  They had spent the rest of the evening at the hip, shamelessly flirting and teasing one another while doing the most mundane things around the apartment – washing dishes, watching television, brushing their teeth before going to bed.  She reciprocated every look, every touch, and every kiss with as much fervor as he did.  It made him hungry for more of her attention, anxious for every ounce of her love and affection.  He felt lighthearted whenever he pictured himself coming home to her every night for the rest of his life.  It made him almost want to do something he never did – call in sick.  The only thing that stopped him was a sweet promise that he made to himself – that he’d be able to have her for all their days to come.  So with that in mind, he slowly eased out of bed and grabbed his clothes on, taking care to not disturb her sleep. 

Youngbae powered on his phone, checking the time and savoring a glimpse of Amina’s impish smile on his wallpaper once more.  He wondered what she was doing for the nth time that day.

“Youngbae-yah, what about this layout?” asked the marketing coordinator.

“Hmm?” Youngbae replied, his eyebrows raised in question.  He reluctantly tucked the phone inside his jacket pocket and forced himself to concentrate at the task at hand. His eyes went over to the board, gazing back and forth between the previous ones and the newer one chosen for him.  He chewed on his inner cheek and narrowed his eyes, but was unable to find any significant differences between the two that stood out to him. 

Youngbae glanced up and apologetically smiled.  “Mianhae… I, umm…”  He cringed.

The coordinator nodded her head, noticing his preoccupation.  “It’s alright.  We’ve been at it for awhile.  Why don’t we call it a day and get back to this again on Monday?  I’ll have the team come up with some more designs so it’ll be easier to decide or change up.”

“Neh,” Youngbae replied, grateful for the solution.  “I think I will have a clearer idea of what concept I want too by then.”

She smiled and bowed, leaving him alone at the conference table.

Great.  More time to kill before the next-

His phone vibrated.

Grabbing his phone, he immediately checked his messages and grinned to himself.  He must have been thinking about her too hard.  He quickly read Amina’s message, his smile dimming slightly as read into the serious tone of her request.  Right as he was about to text her back, he heard his name called.  Youngbae swung his head towards the door, feeling slightly piqued. 

“Neh?” he bit out.

“Did you call the meeting with the President or did he call it?”  Jiyong snapped, his mood turning sour with every passing second. 

Youngbae narrowed his eyes at Jiyong’s tone.  “If I requested a meeting with Yang sajangnim and you were supposed to be there, I would have told you about it.”

Jiyong clamped his mouth shut.

“Wae?” Youngbae’s eyebrows knitted together.  “What time is your meeting?”

“You mean our meeting?”

“Why would he want to meet with you?  I only asked him to meet with me.”

Jiyong scoffed.  “Beats me.  But his came storming into the studio about five minutes ago and told me I needed to attend and that you’d be there.  So you tell me.”

Youngbae stood up from his seat.  He flexed his jaw and he glanced about the room, thinking hard.  He hadn’t expected that there would be an audience when he imparted the marriage news to YG.  But of course, the next logical person after his family should have been Jiyong.  Only… things still weren’t right between them. 

He picked his phone up off the table and shoved it back inside his jacket pocket, walking towards the door.  Youngbae brushed passed Jiyong and arrogantly muttered, “Well, I guess you’re about to find out.”  He walked steadily into the hallway, taking the side stairwell exit that would lead him up the two flights of stairs to the sixth floor.

Jiyong fumed silently behind.  “Look man, I’ve got to do.”

Youngbae looked behind him, his feet swiftly climbing one stair after the other.  “You’re not the only one.”  He turned to glance up ahead, his eyes filled with annoyance.  They climbed the stairwell in silence until they finally reached their destination.  Youngbae reached the top first and smirked silently to himself, hearing the quiet huffs that Jiyong exhaled before he finally caught up.  Dude really needed to stop smoking.

Youngbae held the door open and allowed Jiyong to pass through.  They traded knowing glances, Jiyong’s one of chagrin, before walking silently down the hallway towards President Yang’s office.  The place was quiet.  Many of the employees were out for lunch or had gone home for the rest of the day, jump starting their weekend.  They bowed swiftly to the president’s secretary and she immediately returned the gesture, raising her hand towards the office door to indicate that they proceed ahead.

Adjusting his jacket, Youngbae took a swift inhale and bounced his shoulders to shrug off his impending nerves right before walking in behind Jiyong.  They bowed to their boss who was still busily typing away on the computer.  Youngbae shut the door behind them and grabbed the last vacant seat in front of the desk.

Jiyong swallowed hard, swiftly eyeing his sajangnim and Youngbae, not knowing who was going to talk first.  He just knew that he was here along for the ride.  At least he hoped so.  Because based on his brief encounter with the president earlier, this meeting wasn’t going to be nice.

Mr. YG finished dictating the email he was writing and hit ‘send’ before turning his attention towards the two sitting in front of him.  He had a severe expression on his face and was not in the mood to trade pleasantries.  He cut to the chase.  “Youngbae-yah, you called the meeting.  Speak.”

Youngbae cleared his throat and straightened in his chair.  He heard the cold tone in his sajangnim’s voice many times over the past decade and was conditioned to it.  He spoke calm and clearly.  “As a mentor and someone who has known me for almost half my life… President Yang, you are like a second parent to me.  And for that, I must apologize for not imparting this information to you sooner.”

He bowed his head low in his seat.  “Mianhaeyo.  It is true.  I regret to inform you that my girlfriend and I are expecting our first child.”  He looked up and visibly paused, taking a deep breath.  “I know that this may have come at the worst time, especially with my impending album release and current on-going Big Bang promotional venues.  But it was unplanned.”

His jaw tensed as he continued.  “I’ve spoken to my parents and have discussed the matter with Amina-yah in length.  We all understand the need to maintain discretion and a low profile to mitigate any chances of our information becoming publicized.  But in the off-chance that it does occur, and to detract any speculation about our relationship or the baby… we’ve decided to quietly get married.” 

“You whaaat!”  Jiyong exclaimed heatedly, his eyes bulging.

Youngbae snapped his head towards the outburst, his face flushing with indignation.   

“You can’t even take care of her… and now you’re marrying her?”  Jiyong scoffed. 

The tone of disbelief and sarcasm spilling forth from Jiyong’s mouth made Youngbae’s blood boil.  He stood half-way up out of his seat, a haze of fury over-taking him.  But at the last second, Youngbae fisted his hands over the arms of the chair and forced himself to sit back down.  His jaw was clenched so tightly, he could feel the muscles alongside his neck tick.  He glanced away and concentrated on breathing slowly.

“Jiyong!” Mr. YG snapped, his eyes cutting like laser beams.  He looked between the two and felt his own ire rising with each passing second. 

Jiyong bit off a retort, his eyes turning stony.  He looked sharply down and faced the opposite direction, brooding.

Unlike Jiyong, Mr. YG had the luxury of knowing the details of the marriage a couple of days in advance and only considered this meeting a formality.  But when he was reviewing schedules and noticed Jiyong’s trip to visit his parents, which was requested months in advance, suddenly cancelled – it set off alarm bells inside his head.  The time slot had now been filled with more studio time and booked solid all next week.  He went down to speak to Jiyong personally about the change of plans, wanting to also see if the younger man would crack and confess his knowledge about Youngbae’s impending nuptials.  But the more he talked to Jiyong, the more he realized… Jiyong didn’t have a clue what was going on.  Now that, made him furious. 

“Now, I brought you two in here to see exactly what the hell has been going on, but I think I’ve seen enough.”  Mr. YG turned towards his right, watching Youngbae’s nose flare slightly and his breathing stifle as he tried to reign in his rage.  “Youngbae-yah, I assume you haven’t told Jiyong the ‘good’ news?”

Jiyong scoffed and folded his arms over his chest.  He still refused to look in their direction but rested his ankle on top of his knee, jiggling slightly in annoyance.  He continued brooding.

Youngbae let out an inaudible heavy sigh, the weight of everyone’s disapproval burdening him by the moment.  He glanced briefly at Jiyong’s disdainful pose before looking up at his sajangnim.  “Aniyo.  I have not had the chance to speak to Jiyongie until now.”

“Mwuh?” the president arrogantly asked.  “Do you not have cell phones?