In the morning, I woke up to a shrill honking noise.

Jaejoong: W-what..!?

When I looked at my alarm clock, it was already nine.

Jaejoong:This is bad! I'm definitely late!

Even while I was hurriedly changing into a suit, the honking continued as if to hurry me more.

Jaejoong: Gosh, I get it!

I was changing into my suit while brushing my teeth. I grabbed my make-up set & flew out of teh room while pressing down my bed head. When I left the foyer, I saw a car right in front. Timidly, I looked inside. My brother, not looking very happy, was still honking the horn.

Jaejoong: I'm sorry! I slept in!

Yunho: You're late! Didn't you set your alarm clock properly!?

Jaejoong: That's why I said sorry! Let's hurry up & go, okay?

Yunho: Man..

Like that, we departed for Los Angeles. Even after a while, my brother's mood didn't improve.

Yunho: For a Jung family member to be putting on make-up in the car.. it's unthinkably disgraceful.

Jajeoong: There's no way around it, right? Since I didn't have enough time to put make-up on.

Yunho: Didn't you read the book on manners? What part of you is like a lady?

Jaejoong: It's because I read that book until late at night that I couldn't wake up! Since somebody said to memorize it all in three days.

yunho: So you're saying it's my fault? In the first place, if you use that sort of language in Los Angeles.. You know you'll be driven out right immediately, right?

Jajeoong: I know! Ah, don't drive so recklessly! My mascara will look weird!

Yunho: Do you really understand..?

My brother's grandmother lived in Los Angeles, where we were going. I would be greeting her anew as a proper successor candidate.

Yunho: In the first place, there's no reason for me to worry about you, you know? Since I'm against you as successor.

Jaejoong: What - you're probably just scared of going by yourself, right?

Yunho: There's no way I'd be s-scared, right..!

His grandmother was a very strict person & even my brother can't compete with her at all. That's obviously the same for me..

Jaejoong: Hey. What do you think your grandmother will say?

Yunho: That you should put on less make-up?

Jaejoong: That's not it. I meant regarding how I might succeed.

Yunho: Who knows. However, be prepared to be told harsh things.

jaejoong: Okay..

Grandmother has never smiled even once for me, a child from a previous marriage. I heard that the one who opposed father's remarriage to mother until the very end was also my grandmother in Los Angeles. She definitely won't accept me.. I wonder if she'll tell me.. to leave the Jung family immediately.. When we arrive at the estate in Los Angeles, we were immediately taken to a wide Korean-style room. Grandmother was already waiting inside. She looked at us & quietly bowed.

Yunho: How have you been, grandmother? I apologize for not coming to visit.

Jaejoong: How have you been?

Grandmother: Thank you for coming from such a long ways away. First, Yunho, you must be tired from staying in New York for so long. Please assist us so as not to waste what you have learnt there.

Yunho: Please leave it to me. I plan to do various things in order for the group to..

Grandmother: Leaving that aside, what has happened with your engagement?

Yunho: Eh..?

Grandmother: I thought that surely you would have brought your fiancee, Yoona.

Yunho: Um..

Grandmother: You won't tell me that you've annulled teh engagement, will you?

Yunho: ..

Grandmother: Astonishing.. If it were just womanizing, I would not care no matter how much you did. However, an engagement isn't just such a simple thing, yes?

Yunho: Y-yes..

Grandmother: Even though I told you many times it was too early for an engagement.. I wonder who it was that puffed out his chest & told me it would be fine.

Yunho: ..

Grandmother: If you want to succeed the Jung family, take responsibility for your own words.

Yunho: Yes..

My brother was usually towered over everyone. However, he was as small as a child in front of his grandmother. It was so strange to me that I had to look down to stop myself from laughing.

Grandmother: Jaejoong.

Jaejoong: Y-yes!

Grandmother: I heard the main point from my son. That you may succeed the Jung family.

Jaejoong: Father did say that..

Grandmother: Father did..?

Jaejoong: Eh..

I wonder if I worded that strangely..

Grandmother: What do you yourself think about it? Succeeding the Jung familyis different from being left with clean up duty!

jaejoong: Um.. Er..

As soon as I arrived, the pressure was so heavy I wanted to run away. When I looked at my brother to ask for help, he acted distant & turned his gaze upwards. H-help me..!

Grandmother: I do not want your 'um's & 'er's. Tell me the main point.

jaejoong: I don't have the confidence to succeed the Jung family.

Frandmother: You don't have the confidence? Does that mean you will hand over teh family to Yunho?

Jaejoong: That is what I am thinking.. I told father taht as well.

Grandmother: I see. Then, why are you still a successor candidate?

Jaejoong: Father said that he wanted teh two of us to succeed teh Jung family.

Yunho: Eh..?

Grandmother: The two of you..

jaejoong: My brother would do the essential management, while I would be the face of the group.. Then, the two of us would pull the Jung family together..

Yunho: Hey, Jaejoong, dad said that..?

Jaejoong: Yeah..

Grandmother: In short, he is thinking of spiltting the power in half.

Yunho: If that happens, wouldn't it be just be unnecessarilychaotic!? What is dad thinking..

Grandmother: Be quiet! It is not something to have a fit about!

Yunho: I apologize.. I am going to go make a phone call for a bit.

After my brother heard father's true intention. he left his seat. When I stole a glance at grandmother, she had an expression on her face that was clearly sterner than before. Ugh.. being one-on-one is tough..

Grandmother: jaejoong..

Jaejoong: Yes..

Grandmother: Speaking honestly, I do not completely understand what my son is thinking.

jaejoong: ..

Grandmother: However, he is the current head of the Jung family. This is not something with which I can interfere. Moreover, that child has not failed in anything related to business before.

Jaejoong: Eh..

Still sitting, my grandmother bowed deeply towards me.

Grandmother: Jaejoong, I leave the Jung family in your hands.

Jaejoong: G-grandmother..!? Please look up..!

After I stood up without thinking to go to my grandmother's side, she finally looked up again.

Grandmother: Please help the Jung family & Yunho.

Grandmother took my head & for the first time, she smiled at me gently. That night, we slept in a building separate from grandmother's home. There were two rooms, so I was sleepong in a room separated from big brother's by a sliding door. F-for some reason, I'm kind of nervous..

Yunho: Hey, are you asleep already?

Jaejoong: Not yet. Can't sleep?

Yunho: Yeah..

I wonder if b-big brother is nervous too..? Maybe I'll a bit.

Jaejoong: I can't sleep either..

I tried speaking with a slightly voice. Hehw, I wonder what sort of face big brother is making.

Yunho: You too, huh..

Eh..? At the same time as big brother's serious voice, I heard the rustling sound of something moving. Eh..? Big brother isn't planning over to come over here, is he..

Yunho: Eye mask, eye mask..

Jaejoong: Eh? Eye mask?

Yunho: It's kind of bright here, right? I thought I had the eye mask I brought to use on teh plane in my bag..

S-so that's the reason he couldn't sleep..

Yunho: Come to think of it, when we came a long time ago, we slept in teh same room.

jaejoong: Yeah. Father & the others were in that room. Me & big brother were in this one.

Yunho: That time, we slept with our pillows right up next to each other, but.. We think it's normal to sleep separately now. I do & you do too.

Jaejoong: Yeah..

Yunho: Somehow..

Jaejoong: Hm?

My brother didn't say anything after that.

Jaejoong: Big brother..? Did you fall asleep?

Somehow.. What did he want to say after that? I was interested in what he had to say, so I quietly tried opening teh sliding door. Inside the room, which was lit up with moonlight.. My brother, wearing an eye mask, was sleeping soundly as he stood. Gosh, at the most important point..! I was little angry, so I tried taking off his eye mask. Even then, my brother didn't notice & his eyes stayed closed. Hehe, even though he's always so proud.. His sleeping face hasn't changed much since back then..

Jaejoong: Big brother.

Even when I tried calling him, my brother's deep sleeper's breaths stayed the same.

Jaejoong: Big brother..

I drew my face closer & I softly gave my brother a kiss. W-what am I doing! Coming back to my senses, I hurriedly returned to my own mattress. Feeling startled every time I heard my brother's turning over in his sleep from the next room, it became morning before I knew it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Preview of Chapter 13

On the day of the piano contest, which came only once a year.

Yoona: Oh, so teh two of you came as well! Yunho please listen to my piano then, as it has been a long time.

Eh.. the base of my little finger is turning red. I wonder if I was bitten by a bug.. Could it be.. this pain.. When I looked over from the judges' seats to the stage wings, I saw Yoona who was smiling slightly. W-what should I do..!