The entire household returned to its serene state five days after Seohyun’s untimely arrival. And as if the young girl’s stay in the house wasn’t enough to state a point, Changmin realized that the previous weekend he had gloriously spent with his wife must have been the compensation for the time he hasn’t seen her – primarily because Sooyoung’s usual busy schedule got a tad busier on the succeeding days after.    Back then, she would wake up at five-thirty, leave the house at seven, and then return at quarter past six in the evening. However, the past days have been particularly demanding that he could only manage to see her for thirty minutes every morning. At night, the girl would be too busy poring over her notes and studying that he felt guilty having to share the room while she burned the midnight oil.   Changmin, who had just gotten used to sleeping in the guest room, needed to adjust again now that he has returned to their room. The first night had been particularly difficult. It wasn’t the new pink bed covers or the absence of Keroro-stickers on the wall that bothered him; but rather the thought that he would be sharing the same bed with her again.   Though the time when the mountains of pillows separating them had long ended, he found it suddenly uncomfortable to sleep next to her. He kept tossing and turning under the blanket enough for Sooyoung to yank it away from him.   “Yah! Aren’t you going to let me sleep?” “Sorry. I am trying to get used to sleeping here again.” “In as much as you would want to get back to your bed and sleep alone, Makdoongie has no other place to sleep on---” “It’s not that I want to sleep alone in a bed.”  It’s because you are so close and I have to fight the urge to hug you.  “Whatever it may be Min, just get yourself comfortable. I need to wake up early tomorrow so I’ll sleep first, okay?” “But it’s not what you---”  “Goodnight.”   Changmin smiled upon remembering. Why did I end up falling in love with such a stubborn girl?   He continued with his chore of folding the clothes he had taken from the clothesline when the doorbell rang. He had barely put down the large blanket he was holding before he heard the shuffle of fluffy slippers against the wooden floor as Seohyun went out of her room.   “Oh, Makdoongie. Do you mind opening the door for me?” He pointed at the small mound of clothes on the carpeted floor with his lips, indicating that the chore has to be done or else he will probably receive an earful from Sooyoung again – something that he really does not mind at all, mostly because it would mean more moments spent with her; no matter how unromantic it may be.   Seohyun seemed to understand because she nodded and walked slowly towards the door.   “I wonder if Yesung-hyung forgot something.”   He said behind her back, remembering the bushy-haired and silent man who delivers the daily paper. Yesung doesn’t talk much but it didn’t take Changmin a long while to get comfortable with him.   “Makdoo---” The sentence was never finished as the door opened and light flooded the living room, revealing the form of Jung Yonghwa.   Oh. He had to swallow back a teasing comment as he witnessed the young girl fall back shyly into the shadows as the young man stepped into the room. Changmin then stood up from where he was sitting and walked towards the unexpected visitor, carefully avoiding the pile of folded clothes on the floor.   “Yong! What a lovely surprise.” He pulled the younger one in a quick embrace. “Hyung!”   The visitor beamed at him and then looked at the girl standing beside the door. Changmin pretended not to notice how Yonghwa tried to suppress the wide grin spreading on his face as he gazed at the still speechless Seohyun.    “What are you doing here?” She said it in an almost-whisper.   “Eh, Makdoongie, that’s not how you welcome a friend.” Changmin patted the young girl’s head and went on to receive Yonghwa’s high five.    “So Yong, what brought you here?” The answer was obvious but the tall guy just could not let the chance of teasing the uptight maknae pass by.   “Ah...” Yonghwa opened his mouth but nothing else came out. Instead, he smiled that boyish smile of his once again and lightly punched Changmin’s arm. “Hyung, stop.” “What?!” Feigning innocence and surprise, Changmin let out a hearty laugh as he read the message in the younger boy’s eyes.    To his credit, Yonghwa had always been a compassionate person. Despite his playful and childlike personality, he was very keen on making others feel comfortable. And at that moment, Seohyun, who was standing rigidly like a stump of wood, looked very, very uncomfortable with the males’ exchanges.   “Arasso, arasso...” Changmin raised both hands in the air and let out another smug grin. “Okay, I’ll just continue folding these clothes in our room.” He emphasized the last two words and walked back to where he was positioned before the younger man arrived.   “Yonghwa, make yourself at home.” He picked up the clothes and balanced them carefully on his arm, ready for his long walk towards his shared bedroom with Sooyoung.    “Ah, wait.”  Changmin turned around and faced the two. “Sister-in-law, treat my future brother-in-law nicely, okay?”    And with the -eating grin pasted on his face, he quickly dashed towards the safety of their room before Seohyun could fully understand what he meant.  

 

“Umma, you wanted to talk to me?”

Siwon walked inside the mayor’s office to see his mother reading a sheet of paper, which he supposed she had taken from what-might-be endless piles of documents safely stacked inside her drawer. The elder lady peered at him from behind her spectacles – acknowledging his presence – and then pointed to the empty chair in front of the table before going back on her task.

  Understanding the silent command, Siwon seated himself comfortably on the chair and waited for his mother to finish with what she was doing. All the while, he took note of his surroundings; his eyes wandering around the entirety of the room. Everything – from the regal fleur-de-lis patterned wallpaper to the classic mahogany table – screamed regality and importance. Despite being the son of the respected mayor, Siwon had only been to her office twice in his entire life. It was his brother, Changmin, who was a frequent visitor of the place; much too frequent that he might as well count as one of the employees in the office itself.   From the two times he had visited, one was during Madame Shim’s first day of serving as mayor of the city, and the other was when he needed to submit documents for the registration of his personal business establishment. Though the first one can be classified as an unofficial visit, Madame Shim, as a matriarch and mayor, had clearly put a distinction between her responsibilities as head of family and a public official. And it was also for this reason why during the minutes before he arrived at the office, Siwon had been wondering what is it so important that his mother has to summon him to her office instead of discussing it to him at their home once the day ended.    He was grateful for the distraction brought by his mother’s unfinished task for it gave him enough time to calm his nerves. After ten minutes more of waiting, Madame Shim placed the sheet in an empty folder and carefully put it back inside her stack of drawers.   “That was the latest set of ordinances passed by the Council of Legislators.” She started, referring to the document she had just read. “All they need is an approval from me now. However, there are a few of those new laws that go against some clauses from our National Constitution. I shall ask the Councilors again if they have carefully ran over each detail of this before approving it. How can people respect the law if the legalities contradict each other? It is the task of public officials to make sure that the law is well-implemented and legislators can do their share by making sure that any ordinance they pass addresses a necessity!”   Madame Shim’s voice rose just as Siwon’s eyebrows did. He gulped nervously, not knowing what to say, but before he could open his mouth to say that he whole-heartedly agrees with what his mother is saying, she continued.   “We cannot allow incompetent and lazy public officials who do not take their jobs seriously! They swore an oath to serve the people and so they shall do just what is expected of them. After all, it is the taxes paid by the citizens that are putting food to their tables!”   She took a big breath afterwards and then used her thumb to massage her temples.   “Ah, these people. They’re giving me headaches so early in the morning.”   At this, Siwon stood up in the most gentlemanly manner he can and walked towards the water dispenser to get his mother a drink.   “Umma, drink this. It can at least lessen the stress that you are feeling right now.”   “Ah thank you, son.” Madame Shim accepted the glass, took a long sip from it, and then placed it back on her table. Siwon, who had already returned back to his seat, felt a bit more relaxed now that he had secured a good image for a start. But his happiness was short-lived when the elderly lady looked at him and the expression on her face toughened up again.   “For a moment there I forgot why I have called you here.” “N-neh, umma. What is it about?”   The nervousness in his voice was apparent and though the elderly lady had clearly heard it, she didn’t bat an eyelash when she uttered her next words.   “Choi Siwon, give me a straight answer. Are you going out with vice-mayor Hwang?”

 

 

It was not the last time that Yonghwa had visited. For the following weeks after the first, Changmin had been used to him knocking on their front door at irregular times of the day that he had then learned to be accustomed to his unannounced visits. 

  He had found out, after a detailed interview with Seohyun, that Yonghwa had been looking for her ever since the day she ran away from home. A feat Changmin found worth applauding especially after knowing that the reason why the young girl ran away in the first place was because her parents did not approve of the boy.   “Are you two dating?” He asked her then, once more trying to placate the mischievous grin on his face. They were in the living room waiting for Sooyoung. It was half past five but Changmin still felt full after their rather heavy late afternoon snack.   “No!” Her opposition sounded strong and sturdy. “We are only friends.” But the following words were spoken gently, as if the words itself would get broken when said too loud.   His eyebrows went up without him intending to. “Well if th