After much bantering and arguing, Donghwa finally agreed to come with me. It was a silent drive to the restaurant where Jihyuk and her family would be waiting. And I’ve got my fingers crossed that Donghwa wouldn’t be much of the idiot he is like before, or else I’d be left with no other choice.

When the building came into view, I rushed out of the car and into the vacant restaurant. The usually crowded place was empty except for Sunmi and her parents. Jihyuk was nowhere in sight. Perhaps seeing my confused expression, “Jihyuk requested for the entire place to be closed down especially for today,” her sister explained while eyeing the door. “She’s in the kitchen.”

I found her leaning against the sink with the sleeves of her shirt pushed up her shoulders. “Don’t be too hard on yourself,” I said, laying a hand on the small of her back.

She turned to me worriedly. “What if he doesn’t like the food? What if he comments on the place? What if it wasn’t a good idea to bring him here and—“

“You worry too much,” I commented, embracing her tight. “It’ll be fine. Trust me.”

“Says the guy who got punched,” she mumbled, poking the spot on my forehead where a bruise was just beginning to fade.

I pretended to act hurt. “Ouch, that crushed my ego.” She didn’t smile. Nor did she laugh. It was like that all throughout the dinner. As Sunmi served the food, Jihyuk was fidgeting in her seat while she eyed Donghwa’s reaction closely. It was then that I realized how much he had taken a toll on her. The girl who couldn’t care any less about what other people think before has now been reduced to an overly self-conscious one. The Jihyuk that seemed to be so confident, so in-your-face before is now just insecure about everything, more so when Donghwa saw her, gave her a head-to-toe look, and said, “Don’t you have any other clothes to wear?” This causes Jihyuk to look down at what she’s wearing and feel more down than before.

“Hyung, please—“

“What?” He shrugged innocently as if being rude consumes most of his day. But then again, it does. “I’m just asking.”

I attempted to hold her hand, but Jihyuk refused with a soft “It’s okay. He’s right, anyway.”

And with a heavy heart, I sank down on my seat and became a witness to the two-hour torture. As each dish was served, Donghwa made sure to inspect the plate, the serving spoon, even the glass and the pitcher. “Hyung, please. They’re not trying to poison you,” I muttered enough for him to hear.

“You can never be too complacent,” he retorted in a loud voice, as if making sure Jihyuk and her family was listening to his every word. He scooped a portion with his spoon and eyed it closely. Then he let it plop back on the plate messily without eating anything. “I’m not even sure if their hands are clean while cooking this.”

From the corner of my vision, I saw Mrs. Jung holding onto her husband’s arm, preventing him from storming to our table and beat the hell out of my brother – which I hope he would do. But they froze in place as soon as Jihyuk glanced at them, shaking her head microscopically.

“If you want, I’ll just buy food outside—“ Jihyuk said, preparing to stand up.

“There’s no need for that,” I said, pulling her to sit down.

Donghwa slouched in his chair and exclaimed, “Thank heavens! I am to be spared of the horrific nightmares of eating this food – if you could even call it that.”

This time, there was no stopping Jihyuk as she quickly left her seat and dashed out the restaurant. Sunmi came over a few seconds later to retrieve the food she had just served. Wiping the table with a rag, Sunmi can’t control her coughing, nearly wheezing. “Geez, please keep your sickness to yourself, will you? No wonder this place looks so unsanitary,” Donghwa commented.

Feeling guilty, “I’m sorry. Just let me help you with that,” I offered her and was about to take the plates from her hands.

“Don’t, Donghae,” the man scolded. “It’s their job to clean up. So let them.”

And it left me no other choice but to watch apologetically as Sunmi marched to the kitchen to clean up all by herself. “You didn’t have to be like that, you know,” I said to Donghwa. “They’re good people. They even closed this place for the entire day just for this dinner.”

“Ah, I wouldn’t wonder why if this restaurant closes in a few days time,” was his only reply.

I slammed my fist against the table. “Why can’t you give her a chance? She’s really important to me.”

“Really?” Donghwa said sarcastically and sat upright. “Tell me why I should like her.”

I began enumerating. “She’s kind. She’s smart. She’s interesting and funny. She—“

“—asks you to buy things for her? She always clings to you? She can’t wait for you to start working?” Donghwa cut me off. “All she’s after is your money which, by the way, comes from me. Let me guess: she tells you she loves you after you buy her gifts. Ha! Dare her to say that when you’re both cold and starving and homeless. No one loves a man for his personality anymore, Donghae. It’s all about the money.”

And I wanted to punch him in the guts at that moment. I don’t buy her gifts and she doesn’t tell me she loves me either. Even if I do give her presents, she just won’t say it. “I love her, hyung.”

“Here we go again,” he sighed.

“I love her. She makes me happy and she supports me in whatever I do. She’s funny and smart and—“

“Everybody can make you happy, Donghae. Everyone can support you. Everyone’s funny and smart. And you don’t just settle with mediocrity. You don’t deserve some public school teacher just as much as she doesn’t deserve you. You don’t settle with merely satisfactory.”

And as if on cue, the doors opened, revealing a breathless Jihyuk carrying a plastic bag. Wasting no time, she jogged to the kitchen and disappeared behind the kitchen doors. In a few minutes, she was out again, this time with a plate in her hands. “Eat well,”  she said, presenting the food in front of Donghwa.

He, however, was not amused. One look at the dish and he immediately stood. “See? You really are trying to kill me.” And turning to me, he said, “She bought shrimp. Shrimp! Do you imagine that?” He turned to Jihyuk, whose self-esteem was now at its lowest. “I’m allergic to shrimp. Think first before you act. Maybe that’s the reason why you’re just public school teacher. Stick to your level, will you?” And with that, he left.

The silence was deafening as I watched the doors swing back to its frame after my brother left. I only remembered to snap back to reality once Sunmi engaged in another coughing fit. It became so violent that her parents had to give her water and pat her back at the same time to comfort her. It was then that I realize that Jihyuk was missing.

“Where is she?” I turned to Sunmi, who was having trouble coughing and breathing at the same time. She pointed to the kitchen doors, and I rushed towards them but it was locked. I pounded on the door and peeked through the small window. “Jihyuk! Please let me in. Let me talk to you.”

There was no response. More knocks and shouts followed, but the door remained locked. “I’m sorry, okay? Please talk to me again after this. Please answer my calls again after everything that happened tonight,” I murmured against the door, hoping she was listening from the other side.