“How is it?” Sunmi asked after I scribbled on my clipboard. 

“Well,” I put the cap back on the pen. “You’re getting better everyday. And I’m just wondering if it’s because of a.) your medicines, b.) the delicious food your sister brings, c.) your smart and handsome doctor—“ Sunmi snorted and rolled her eyes. “—or d.) because of the patient confined in the other room. I’m really curious.”

She smiled widely. “Can’t I get better just for myself? I want to go out soon. I want to be there when you and Jihyuk get married and have pretty babies. Oh! And I think I feel actually well today because I can’t wait to open my Christmas presents~” she said like a little girl. “And for your information, option D is impossible because the boy looks snobby and arrogant. If he’s uninterested in me, I can be uninterested with him too.”

I just chuckled and shook my head. The door opened, and in came Hyukjae and Jihyuk with their arms linked. “Merry Christmas!” Hyukjae greeted loudly. It was just Christmas Eve, but still. He set the basket of fruits they had brought down on the bedside table. 

“Finally, the Hyuk twins are here. I was about to wonder what took you so long,” I commented Jihyuk approached, and even though she had a thick scarf around her that covered up to her nose, her face contorting to a look of irritation didn’t escape my sight. “Hi baby,” I said and pulled the scarf down just enough so I could kiss her. 

We almost got carried away with the kiss if not for Hyukjae clearing as if to say that we weren’t the only people in this room. Jihyuk looked away, blushing, before she said, “Let’s eat first before opening our presents.”

As we ate dinner, Jihyuk glanced once at Hyukjae, who was eating across Sunmi, and turned to me before we both laughed silently. It was obvious how Hyukjae and Sunmi were awkward towards each other after a really funny incident. Their first meeting went well at first, then it turned almost horrifying.

Jihyuk brought Hyukjae with her as they visited Sunmi. Their introduction was going well, but Jihyuk had to excuse herself to go to the washroom. The two continued talking about school and work, until Hyukjae was overcome with whatever urge to play with Sunmi’s breathing tubes. One tube got loose, causing Sunmi to breathe in great difficulty, like she was having an asthma attack. In his panic, Hyukjae left her side and knocked furiously on the bathroom door until Jihyuk came out and asked for help from a nurse passing by.

I remembered seeing Jihyuk comfort Hyukjae at home. She, almost laughing, kept murmuring “It’s okay. It was an accident,” to the man who looked like he was about to cry. 

When dinner was done and it was time for presents, Jihyuk gave out her presents first. When Hyukjae opened his present, he was shocked to receive a bottle of perfume. “Thanks. This scent is just my style,” he commented.

Jihyuk stared at him blankly. “Won’t you ask why I got you a perfume?”

He smiled widely until his gums showed. “Because you love me and you’ll love me more if I smell good?”

Sunmi, Jihyuk, and I exchanged looks. “It’s because you stink,” Jihyuk explained.

He sulked, causing the three of us to erupt in laughter. Just as Sunmi was about to receive her present from her sister, I pulled Jihyuk to sit on my lap. “Is this my present?” I asked, putting my arms around her. “This is a wonderful Christmas gift.” And I grabbed the hems of her sweater, preparing to yank it up. “Can I unwrap this present now?” I whispered near her ear.

Sunmi groaned, covering her eyes while her sister pushed my hands away. “Ya, do it at home, not here,” the girl complained.

“And lock the goddamn door for me not to walk in on you, geez,” Hyukjae chided.

Jihyuk ignored the comments and handed Sunmi a silver necklace. “It’s a locket,” I remembered her showing it to me two nights ago. “It’s pretty, isn’t it?” And she snapped the locket open to reveal two pictures resized to fit the small frame. On the left was a photo of her parents, and a childhood photo of the siblings graced the right. 

She handed the necklace to Sunmi without saying a word, but I knew that with that simple action, she had expressed everything she needs to say. When Sunmi looked like she was about to cry, Hyukjae stood up and began handing his presents to avoid a dramatic Christmas.

When Jihyuk opened hers and found chocolates in a heart-shaped box, “I give you my heart,” he explained, to which she snorted.

“And to you,” he turned to Sunmi before laying out different action figures on her bedside table. “I don’t want to be Superman, Batman, Ironman, or even Aquaman.” Then he stared at Sunmi. “I want to be your man.” Sunmi was in a coughing fit, and at that moment, a look of horror flashed across Hyukjae’s face as if remembering their awkward first meeting.

Then he handed me a box. After opening it, I laughed, seeing his picture inside. Hyukjae then settled himself on my lap. “You have me for you present,” he said. “Have me, Donghae.” 

“You didn’t have to give yourself to me,” I responded, playing along. “You’re mine already.” My lower body felt numb having someone so heavy sitting on my lap. “You want to know my present for you?”

“Ne, yeobo, what is it?” Hyukjae said. From the bed, I could hear Jihyuk almost choking on her own saliva.

“I’m pregnant,” I said, but then I couldn’t take the needle-pricking sensation on my legs, so I pushed Hyuk away. The two siblings were laughing so much until it was hard to breathe.

***

“This is so crazy,” she whispered, but didn’t release from my grip on her. “Can people get arrested for this? I think so. You punk, let’s take this down. I’m a teacher, not an ex-convict.”

My head hurts from trying to suppress laughter. “Hyuk will never get angry at us. Or you, for this matter,” I said, stepping back a little and examining the Christmas tree from a different angle. Instead of the usual Christmas lights and garlands, Jihyuk and I had decorated the tree with Hyuk’s clothes – a sock, a pair of striped blue boxers, a shirt that said “Kiss me, I’m Korean” in front, a tie I had never seen him wear, and a whole lot more stuff we had ransacked from his drawer. The only thing missing was Hyuk himself.

She raked a hand through her hair and glanced at the door once again. I collapsed on the floor and lied down on the carpet. Jihyuk ran to the door and yanked it open, looked left and right, and closed it again. Then she ran to the bedroom exclaiming, “Your present! Your present!”

While she was nowhere in sight, I pulled a box from underneath the Christmas tree. I was wondering a while ago why she hadn’t asked about it, but then I figured she must have thought it was just another of Hyukjae’s stuff.

“It’s here! It’s here!” she yelled, running out of the room in lightning speed.

I laughed at how cute she acted. “Should I close my eyes?”

She grinned. “Here it is,” she said, handing me a long, rectangular box, and waited as I opened the present.

“A video camera?” I almost shouted, to which she nodded. “What for?” I asked, inspecting the gadget.

Jihyuk frowned. “You don’t seem to want it. Give it back.”

“No!” I blurted, immediately leaning over to kiss her briefly. “Thank you. I really appreciate it, though you didn’t really have to give me anything.” Then, quickly remembering the huge box behind me, “But I bet my gift for you is better,” I said, pushing it towards her.

She chuckled while ripping the wrapping paper. “No, it’s not.” I didn’t argue, but eagerly anticipated her reaction. I flipped the video camera open and turned it on, aiming it to film her. When the paper was in shreds around her, she took a deep breath and opened the lid slowly. “I swear, you bastard, if this has anything stupid…” she muttered threateningly before peeking.

Catching a quick glimpse inside, she put the lid back down and looked at me in awe. “You didn’t.”

I fought back a laugh. “I did.”

She took off the lid completely and stared at the books inside the box. Looking at me, she chewed on her lower lip, whispered, “You bastard,” and looked back at the box. She sniffled. “I hate you.” And she took one book out, running her fingers all over the cover and tracing her finger along the spine.

Say it, I shouted in my thoughts. Say you love me. The camera in my hands was still filming. She blinked quickly, like she was trying hard not to tear up. “It’s a good thing I gave my present first,” Jihyuk said. “Or else it’d be nothing compared to this.”

“It’s not nothing,” I protested. “I can use this camera to film surgeries and stuff.” And she warned me through a death glare. I laughed. “Do you like it?”

Before answering, she shuffled across the floor to sit in between my legs and turned the camera off. “I like it so much I think I even want to live with it in a library. Maybe we’d even get married and I’ll be Mrs. Books.”

Encircling my arms around her and resting my chin on her shoulder, “It took me a while to get them all,” I said. “I got tired visiting libraries around the district just to buy these books and then you’ll just want to leave me?” I whined with a pout.

She tilted her head to look at me, our face just inches away. “How did you have the time to buy all of these?”

“I’m a creative man. And even if I didn’t have enough time, I asked a certain someone to do stuff for me.”

“By someone, you mean…”

“Siwon,” I finished for her, pulling her down to lie with me on the floor at the same time. “I can’t trust Hyuk enough to buy books you’d like. Maybe he’d even buy you comic books or something.”

As if on cue, my phone rang. Checking the caller ID, “Speak of the devil…” I grumbled and put the call on loud speaker. “Hyuk?”

“Hae,” he responded. “I’ll be home late.”

Jihyuk whined. “Aww Hyuk twin, I actually waited up on you.”

Hyukjae laughed. “I’ll bother you both tomorrow,” he said and then hung up.

“He won’t get to see our pretty Christmas tree,” Jihyuk mumbled sadly.

I chuckled and embraced her tighter. Kissing her forehead, I whispered, “Merry Christmas, baby.”

***

Merry Christmas everyone~!