“Omma, I’m off to work! Bye!” I called as I whirled through the kitchen, grabbed my lunch, and made for the door.

“Yah! Don’t forget about the dinner tonight!!” she called back.

Crap!, I thought. I had completely forgotten.

“I expect you to come straight home after work to clean and prep. It’s a formal dinner, and you need to look nice. Don’t worry, I washed your dresses for you,” she said again.

Formal dinner? “Okay, Omma, I’ll be here!” I said, glad she couldn’t see the confused frown on my face.

“Hmph, you’d better,” I thought I heard her say.

***

At work, the boss walked by to say ‘good morning’ like he always did. He looked nice, wearing a white button-up with a black skinny tie. This time, though, he paused to say something.

“Hey, Choa. Got any plans tonight?”

I sighed. “Apparently, my family is having an important dinner that I need to attend.” I shot him a look of annoyance, and he chuckled. “Weyo?”

He scratched at the back of his neck and gave a shy smile. “Well, I don’t know if I told you, but I’m in a band now.”

“Chincha?? What kind of band?!”

“Well, they do rock and ballads. I play lead guitar, and tonight’s my first gig with them. I was gonna ask you and Sungjong to come.”

“OH I’LL BE THERE!!” came the voice of a bright-eyed young man, scurrying up to join our conversation. Sungjong was smiling widely. “Can’t wait, boss! I’ll see if I can bring my guy along. It’s at the new bar downtown, right? 24 Handles, it’s called?”

Myungsoo smiled. “Neh. That’s the one. Choa, you sure you can’t come?”

I gave him a sad shrug. “I’ll see if I can leave the dinner early or something. Though I doubt it…”

“It’s okay,” boss said. “I’ll keep my phone on me, so text me when it’s over, and I’ll let you know if you could still come.”

“Sure thing, boss. Good luck tonight!” I said, throwing him a very nerdy two-thumbs up.

He chuckled. “Thanks.” Then he sauntered off to greet the other employees.

I slumped to my desk. Now that he mentioned it, I did want to come watch his band. I picked up my phone and texted Sulli.

When do you think the dinner will end tonight?
-Sent to Dongsaeng at 8:45am

What dinner?
-From Dongsaeng at 8:47am

I frowned hard. Didn’t Omma tell her? Did she forget too?

The dinner that Omma has been going on about, of course!
Did she not tell you?
-Sent to Dongsaeng at 8:47am

After some time, my phone finally dinged in reply.

She didn’t. And I just asked her.
Apparently, it’s only for you. I’m not invited :/
-From Dongsaeng at 8:53am

But it’s okay. I’m going to go see Woohyun.
I guess his band’s performing.
-From Dongsaeng at 8:53am

Mwo?? It didn’t make any sense. I tossed my phone into my bag and tried to shift my focus to work instead. But it couldn’t be helped. What could this dinner possibly be about?!, I wondered. The truth was that I really didn’t want to go. Not if Sulli wasn’t going to be there. And not if it meant I’d miss the boss’s debut as a guitarist.

I groaned to myself. Life could be so unfair.

*******

“Omma! What is this dinner about?!” I asked as soon as I got home.

“No time for questions,” she said, ushering a feather-duster into my hand. “Help me clean.”

“But who’s coming? Sulli said--”

“What did I say about questions?!” she said, pushing me now towards our cabinet of showy plates and tea cups. “Clean! Dust!”

I pouted, but began my work. Omma picked up where she left off in vacuuming, and together we moved in silence. It wasn’t until she had finished, and the noisy vacuum was finally turned off that she turned to me.

“I found a potential suitor for you. He’s coming with his family. And I don’t want to hear you give me any sass about it.” And just like that, she picked up the vacuum and walked away.

I had to pick my jaw up off the floor. A suitor??, I thought. Above anything else, getting set up (by my Omma, no less!) was the last thing that I wanted.

I stood there, frozen on the spot. It wasn’t until Omma came back and nagged me (“What are you doing!! Clean up! And if you’re done, then go make yourself look nice! Pick out a nice dress. I better not see that ponytail at dinner time!”) that I finally moved, robotically but still, to follow her orders.

***

It was five minutes ‘til 7, and Omma and I were dressed, ready, and waiting at the dinner table. I was instantly struck with déjà vu, thinking about the last time we had dinner guests. I shuddered at the memory and prayed that this time would be infinitely better.

“Is the guy nice?” I tried to ask Omma.

“See for yourself,” she replied without looking up at me.

At 7 on the button, our doorbell rang. We stood up to answer it. I saw first the parents, who conveniently blocked the view of this potential suitor I was to meet. Omma and I bowed low, as did the parents.

Curiosity got the better of me, and at the trough of my bow, I decided to steal a glance at the suitor. I peeked up…

… into the warmest chocolate-brown eyes I had ever seen.

I gasped out loud and straightened up quickly, one hand cupping my mouth in surprise. The eyes, too, looked wide and spooked, as he also realized the situation.

“CHOA?!?”

“H...HOWON???!?!”

--

XD HEUHEUHEUHEUHEU told you there was gonna be drama! What will happen at the dinner? Will Choa and Howon follow their parents' lead and consider dating? Should they consider it?? Leave a comment below and tune in next time to see!!

And in the meantime, thank you for reading/commenting/upvoting! I'm so glad that you are keeping up with the story. Really... you guys make me feel so blessed :)