There was one thing I tried to do ever since the night I had a fight—if that is what you can call it—with Yongguk, I ignored him. Whenever we were both in the house at the same time, I would stay in my room. When he stayed in his room, I was preparing something in the kitchen or cleaning the house with the help of Daehyun. And there were those days where we both were at work, and my mind kept reeling with images of him. My mind thought of him so much that I was unfocused at work. It turned out that I mistook a blood test, and that caused me to be scorned by Chief Gook. When I explained to him that I was having personal problems, he told me that he understood that I should take a few days off. Miraculously, those few days off were four days. 

On my second day free, I decided to wake up early and go to the market after helping Daehyun with breakfast. He, being the amazing cook he was, even gave me a list of the things we needed for dinner. I just smiled, and shook my head as he kept naming ingredients. He was a good cook, yes, but there was work that needed to be done in his cooking. Sometimes he would make things a bit too salty, or too spicy, or too bland. I would be the one that would help him, and he would tell me that he would create the whole meal for my birthday as a form of thank you. 

"I'm going now," I called out, putting on my shoes. 

"Noona!" someone called. "Can I got with you?"

When I turned my head back, I saw Junhong standing behind me with his phone in hand. I tilted my head to the side and sat up straight. "You don't want to stay here and play video games with Jongup?"

He shook his head and pulled on a snapback then his shoes. "I want to get out of the house for a while."

I watched him as he walked out of the door and to the lift. His eyes were on his phone as he sent text messages back and forth with someone. I, because of the little smiles he would have, thought he was messaging a girl. His smile would come and go, and it left completely when we got in the car. Junhong the radio, singing along to a new song of some idol group. I could feel the smile spreading around my face as he rapped along to the artist, noticing that he was good. 

When we got to the market, Junhong kept close to me. He asked me about the ingredients, and made a face when he didn't recognise it. I would laugh when I would tell him that he had tried said-so ingredient before in my cooking, and he would shake his head and say that he had never tasted something like that ever before. 

"You're buying the ingredients to make kimchi," he noted. "Are you going to make kimchi, noona?"

"We are almost out," I chuckled, grabbing a few radishes from the table. "I was thinking of making a different kind of kimchi today, though. Of course, I'll make your favourite, but I want to make something else as well." I glanced at him as I paid the old lady, smiling. "Have you tried dandelion kimchi? Jinae unnie brought some to the hospital for us to try and it was wonderful."

"How many types of kimchi are you making?" Junhong groaned, looking down at the bags I made him carry. There were different types of vegetables in there, as well as seafood and the usual sweets that the boys enjoyed. 

"Five," I chuckled. "And you will like them all. Trust me."

"I don't trust you," he mumbled from behind me. "What if it's too salty? Or too spicy? What if it just doesn't taste good?"

"Hey!" I smacked him in the shoulder, causing him to let out a laugh. "You love my cooking."

"The last time you made mackerel, it tasted a bit too salty."

I eyed him for a few seconds, made a face and grabbed the bag from the old lady standing in front of me. Glancing back at him once again, I scoffed. "Last time I ever make breakfast for you."

"No!" he called out, catching up to me. "Your cooking is good, you just need to practise not putting too much salt."

For the rest of our shopping, we made fun of each other or spoke of silly little things. He told me about his school, and how happy he was that he would be graduating soon. Then, he spoke of the many things he was planning to do when e got to college, including playing basketball. As I looked at him, I noticed that he looked happy for once. Ever since I met him, he had that small dull look to his eyes. His brown eyes were always filled with that certain hint of sadness, anger, and the hidden despair that we all keep hidden. But, looking into his eyes now, I could see that the majority of hose things were clouded with happiness. Of course, there was still a hint of all those emotions inside of him, but the happiness overthrew all of them. That made me happy.

While walking back to the car from the back of the market, all Junhong could talk about was the delicious and warm tteokboki that an older lady allowed him to taste while I bought from her. Being the loveable person I was, I allowed him to carry the bag filled with snacks. I knew he would be eating them while I drove home, so I allowed him to rest in the taste of the warm tteokboki. 

"Jung Mone," someone said from behind me. "It's a surprise seeing you here." The voice sounded like they were acknowledging me, as if it was an honest surprise to see me in a market.

I turned my head, expecting to see an old friend from days past. What I saw was blond hair and small brown eyes, a too-colourful jacket with a slightly large white shirt, and black trousers. I looked him up and down, trying to figure out where I have see him before. "I'm sorry, do I know you?" 

The man laid a hand over his heart and made a hurtful look."I'm hurt that you don't remember me. We met in a cab when you left a norebang."

Recalling back to a few weeks past, I remembered. I pointed at him, a small smile appearing around my lips. "You're the guy that his ex-girlfriend kept calling... Woo Jiho-ssi, am I right?"

"Ding ding ding!" he smiled, walking closer to us with his hands in his pocket. "How have you been? Last I heard, we made plans to go to a norebang but never made it."

"I guess we were both busy," I shrugged my shoulders and kept smiling. "I don't always just sit around in cabs half drunk, you know."

"Right, you work at a hospital," he pointed out. "I went there last Tuesday due to a horrible side pain and I didn't see you in the ER."

"I had two operations that day," I announced, leaning against the back of the car. "Sorry I couldn't help your horrible side pain."

"All is forgiven," he chuckled, "if you come get coffee with me tomorrow."

"She can't," Junhong interrupted from besides me. I turned my head to hi, raising a brow at his sudden words. "We're moving tomorrow." He had a straight look to his face; lips set straight, eyes burning holes into Jiho's skull, and fists closing to the side of him.

"We are?" I asked quietly. "No one told me a thing."

When I turned my head to look back at Jiho, there was a small smirk around his lips. I looked back at the two of them, wondering what was exactly happening between them. Jiho turned his head to look at me with the same smirk. "I'll call you, alright?" He then turned to look at Junhong and gently hit him in the cheek with one of his hands. "Tell Yongguk I said hello." His lips curled to the side and then he turned around to walk back to the market. 

I, on the other hand, stood leaning against the car as Jiho went to the market and Junhong got in the car with a slight angry manner. The door slammed, and I furrowed my brows once again and wondered what the hell was happening. As I drove back home, my mind kept playing what Jiho said to Junhong. 

Tell Yongguk I said hello.

Tell Yongguk I said hello.

Tell Yongguk I said hello.

"Does Woo Jiho know Yongguk?" I finally asked through the annoying silence. "I didn't know that that..."

"Noona, how did you meet him?" he asked, arms crossed together and eyes staring straight ahead. "Jung Mone, tell me how did you meet him?"

"Junhong!" I called out, looking at him in confuse. "Will you calm down? I met him in a cab the night Yongguk woke up. What's so wrong with meeting someone?"

"Aren't you with hyung?" he asked suddenly. "Noona, don't you love hyung?"

I was grateful that we were already home or I would have crashed the car. My hands shook as I held on to the steering wheel, mind reeling and heart beating wildly against my chest. Love. I never thought of myself loving someone, especially someone who still loved a dead girl. Did I love him? I wasn't sure. My heartbeat went wild when he was near me or when his skin touched mine, and my stomach did too many flips as well. When he called my name, or looked at me, I felt the heat rise on my face and my hands sweat. When he just stood there, my head just seeped into nothingness. It was like his image overthrew every sense of mine. He overthrew every sense. Was that love? 

No...

That couldn't be love! That absolutely could not be love. All of those feelings must be something else because that couldn't be love. I absolutely could not love Bang Yongguk. I just couldn't. It would be absolutely wrong for me to love him. 

I didn't answer Junhong's question. Instead, I got out of the car, grabbed my things, and headed up the flat with his question playing over and over in my mind again. Once I got inside, I took out the ingredients and commenced on making the kimchi. I cut and salted the ingredients, which were dandelion greens, green onions, radish, chives, and the usual napa cabbage. After I finished making the kimchi, and stored them all, I decided that it would be good to take a shower. The fresh smell of coconut and pear intoxicated my senses, allowing me to forget about every thing for the few minutes. I dressed myself in the most comfortable clothes I could find for doing nothing. It turned out that sweat pants, a long sleeved shirt, different coloured socks, and a hooded sweatshirt were the most comfortable thing I could wear as I laid on my bed.

There was a knock on the door and then someone came in. Looking up, I saw Junhong walk in with a bleak look in his eyes. He kept looking at me as he walked closer. With a despondent look in his face, he took a seat in front of me. "Noona," he sighed, "I'm sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry about," I muttered, looking down at my hands. "Nothing happened."

"Noona..."

"Nothing happened, Junhong." I raised my voice, looking up at him with deadpanned eyes. I closed my fists inside the arms of my hooded sweatshirt, trying to calm down from the sudden anger that rose inside of me. "I don't know what you're apologising for since nothing happened."

After some time in silence, Junhong took a deep breath and spoke. "Noona, I was wondering if you could help me prepare dinner for the two of us. Everyone is away except for the two of us."

"What are you trying to make?"

"I don't know," he shrugged. "I just don't want to order food, I want something homemade."

"I'll help you," I said, standing from the bed. 

Junhong followed me to the kitchen, hands behind his back as we both looked inside the fridge for something to make. It was eight, so we decided to make something simple for the two of us. We heated rice and fried some leftover meats with egg. Junhong drew something over our plates with rice with ketchup, smiling when he pulled the bottle away. When I read mine, it was two simple words with an adorable smiley face on the bottom. 

"Thank you," I read out loud, then turned to look at him. "Why? I have done nothing."

"You've done more than you think you've done." He took container with kimchi and sat down in front of me. He opened the lid and took a bite of the freshly made kimchi, nodding with a smile. "Noona, if it wasn't for you, Yongguk hyung would have been dead."

"He would have gone to the hospital and his shoulder wouldn't be hurting that much," I corrected him, starting to eat my meal. 

"No," he corrected me, shaking his head. "Hyung is not a big fan of hospitals; a bad memory or something. If you weren't here, he would probably be dead. And not only him, all of us. If we didn't have you in our lives, we would be completely lost. I wouldn't be getting good grades in school, Jongup hyung wouldn't be trying to get into college, Daehyun hyung wouldn't be inventing recipes and writing them down as if they were some form of family secret... To be completely honest, I don't think either of us would be sane if you weren't here. I think we'd be lost, meaninglessly walking from place to place and doing what we're told to do without a reason."

"Meaninglessly?" I raised a brow. I wondered about his choice of words. Meaninglessly, without meaning or significance, empty. I let out a soft scoff and looked at him. "Aren't you exaggerating?"

He didn't look up at he answered. "I'm just saying the truth, noona. I know that I'm not the only one that feels that way about you, everyone else does. Yongguk hyung especially."

"Yongguk has someone else."

"He's slowly moving on." He looked up, then, and let out a small smile that didn't show any emotion. "Noona, wait for him."