E U N H Y U K

Ever since we returned from Dokbayo, Hae hasn’t been the same. He wasn’t as outgoing as he used to be. He didn’t chase me around the dorm and jump on me anymore, and his month’s stock of fish cake (his favorite snack) was left untouched.

During practices, he danced with half the energy and sang a thousand decibels lower than usual. He’d always have that tired, faraway look in his eyes and most of the time, he’d just stare into space, unmoving.

“What happened in Dokbayo?”

That was the question people asked me. I’d just shrug and walk away.

Because honestly, I didn’t know how to tell them the truth - that Donghae met someone who captured his heart.

Even though Hae wouldn’t admit it himself, that’s exactly what happened.

He left his heart in Dokbayo.

~~~

Y O S E O B

“Yoong, aren’t you going to eat anything?” I asked for the hundredth time that night.

“Yeah, later,” Yoona replied, also for the hundredth time that night.

I sighed.

For the last couple of days, Yoona’s been acting rather strange. Okay, misnomer. She’s been acting very very strange lately.

Instead of cooking, she’d just order food on the phone and have it delivered. She hardly finished her meals either and at night, I could hear her toss in turn in her sleep. In the morning, she’d wake up with these giant dark circles beneath her eyes which made her look like an anorexic panda.

I thought of calling up our family doctor and ask him to come over. But I decided that before I make any drastic measures, I should consult with the family expert first – Sulli.

“Yoong’s definitely lovesick,” was her diagnosis.

“Eh?” I almost screamed into my cell phone, not quite believing what I’ve just heard. “Are you sure it’s not a parasitic infection?”

“Ew no!” Sulli whined from the other end. “Anyway, did you say that two foreigners visited your apartment the other day?”

“Yeah. They were really tall and had milky white skin –“ I was interrupted with a shriek.

“KYAAA! Why didn’t you call me up, Yoseob, you idiot! Didn’t you know that they might be Super Junior?” Sulli sounded hysterical.

“They are.” This time, I knew better. I held the phone away from my ears, but I still could hear Sulli’s fangirl screams from the other end of the line.

“Anyway,” I spoke after my cousin had calmed down. “What makes you think my sister is … you know…” - I looked around cautiously, then cupped one hand on the receiver -  “.. lovesick?”

“You really are an idiot! Didn’t you tell me that Yoona’s been crying and that Super Junior came over to visit just to talk to her?  Well, probably, she and one of the members are dating and then that member left her and she misses him. That’s why she’s been acting all weird lately,” Sulli explained as patiently as she could.

“I don’t think that’s the case. Yoona told me that if she’s dating someone, she wouldn’t be taking the subway to work anymore. And besides, it looked like she really hated that guy,” I replied.

Sulli sighed. “She’s your sister. Don’t tell me you don’t know what happened when she was still in school. She got, like, a million guys who played around with her. Yoona couldn’t trust guys. She’s a certified man-hater, but this is the first time she’s fussing over a guy who left her. Wow, which one is he? Is he the one with the light honey-blonde hair?”

“You mean orange-head? Yep. He’s the one,” I remarked.

“I knew it! He’s that guy she pointed out on the internet a couple of days ago,” Sulli giggled.

“Sulli,” I pleaded. “Do something about this. I don’t like it when Yoona’s acting like this. She doesn’t cook delicious meals anymore. I really don’t like it.”

“Don’t worry,” my cousin assured me. I could imagine her eyes twinkling. “I’ll do something about this, alright.”