Hey you guys ^^ I was supposed to update this chapter yesterday, and then the second part today, but I was so busy >.<

It's currently 11:41 pm , and probably will go over to 12:00 am once I'm done, but that's okay.

Anyway, for the hint I gave in the last chapter...did you guys get it? If you said it was Jin Ki's birthday, then you're absolutely right!

I hope you enjoy this first part :D

Previous Chapter:

“Yeah, I still don’t remember it.”

“Well, anyway, you did say that, and I decided to do the project as well. You do remember how reluctant I was to get into it, right?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“Well, that was what attracted me. You made me do something I would have never done before on my own.”

“And what is that?”

“Get into a relationship.”

“Well, I’m glad I did that. It sure has made my life better in numerous ways.”

I smiled and nodded.

“Mine too.”

Korean Vocabulary:

Cha ra so: Good job

Keu reom nyo: Of course

Ottokaji: What should I do?

Joheun nal: Good day

Keu rae deul: Still

Saengil chughahamnida (formal): Happy Birthday

Saengil chugha (informal): Happy Birthday

Pali: Faster

Keu sae: I don't know

Neomu eolyeobda: It's very hard.

A little over a week later, I woke up slightly refreshed, and excited for what was to come.  I woke up extra early today, and since part of our plan was to ignore Jin Ki, I had to take the bus 15 minutes early to avoid running into him.  Ki Bum even called me that morning to remind me not to have Jin Ki walk me to class first thing in the morning.  Chuckling, I told him that I remembered.

When I arrived at school that morning, I got my Calculus textbook and walked to class early before Jin Ki could catch me.  Unfortunately, I couldn’t deter him for too long.  As I walked out of Calculus, he spotted me from the middle of the hallway, walking into English.

“Yun Hee!”

Laughing to myself, I sped walked on into class and ignoring him.  I felt a bit bad, but hey, it was for his birthday.  He would forgive me later.  I burst on laughing when I saw Ki Bum’s face though.  We had gotten closer when Jin Ki introduced us.  Taking a seat next to him, I looked at his disapproving face.

“I thought I told you to ignore him.”

“I did.  I didn’t even talk to him.”

“Then why did I hear him yelling your name?’

“He was trying to get my attention, of which, I wasn’t giving him.”

Ki Bum finally cracked a smile.

“Cha ra so.”

I grinned and we both turned toward the front of the class as the bell rung.

Once class ended, I stood up to walk out of class, but Key stopped me.

“How about I walk you to class today?”

“Is this part of the plan?”

“Keu reom nyo!"

I laughed and nodded.

“Sure.”

And so, he walked me to History, even throwing his arm over my shoulders and I reprimanded him later for that.  Now, probably a bunch of people in school thought I was cheating on Jin Ki with Ki Bum.  He just laughed at me though, and reassured me it would be all over after our surprise party today.  Smiling ruefully, I thanked him and walked into class.

In this class, Tae Min waved me over to sit by him.  Tae Min was an interesting character.  He never failed to make me smile, since he was always hyper and happy.  There’s just something about him that makes you feel better when you feel down. Once I had taken my seat, Jong Hyun sat beside me.  Jong Hyun on the other hand was calmer than Tae Min, but his sense of humor was his strong point.  I had the opportunity to grow closer to him over break.

“Annyoung Tae Min and Jong Hyun.”

“Annyoung.  So Ki Bum hyung walked you to class, did he?”

“Yes.  He even made a scene when he put his arms on my shoulders.  Now everyone thinks I’m cheating on Jin Ki.”

Jong Hyun chuckled and patted my head.

“Gwen cha na. It’ll all be over soon when word spreads that it was to surprise him for his saengil.”

After he said that, I realized something, and it must have showed on my face when Tae Min looked at me curiously.

“Ottokaji?” I asked.

“What do you mean?’

“I have psychology with Jin Ki next.  I can’t possibly ignore him for the entirety of the class, can I?”

“Well, you should try at first, and if that doesn’t work, then act nonchalant as much as possible.  If he hints about his birthday, don’t guess it; if he says it’s his birthday, sheepishly say that you forgot, and wish him a rash ‘saengil chuga’.  That should do.”

“And then when lunch comes around?  We always walk to the cafeteria together.”

“The dongsaengs and I are making up excuses to eat somewhere else.  I think we’ll end up in the school courtyard or something.  You could join us, you know?” said Jong Hyun.

I thought about it, but I ended up feeling even worse.  I didn’t really want to leave Jin Ki by himself all miserable.  So I guess I would have to deal with it.

“Ani, I’ll stay with him.  Like you said, I’ll just play it nonchalantly and not give anything away that we’re doing something for him.”

Tae Min nodded.

“That’s true.  If we’re all gone during lunch, he’ll definitely know something is up.  That won’t be good for the surprise.”

“Arasso, that’s what we’ll do.”

I was miraculously able to avoid conversation with Jin Ki during passing period to psychology by rushing out of class and taking the long route. As soon as he came in, the bell rang and the lecture began.  We were talking about color vision today, and how the theory of sight was based on the Young-Hemholtz Trichromatic Theory, which said that our retina had three types of cones that were sensitive to either red, green, or blue light waves.  A combination of two colors gave way to our 7,000,000 color perceptions.  I heard that when you’re angry or upset, you see red.  I wonder if Jin Ki is seeing that color right now…

When lunch came around, I met Jin Ki in the hallway.  Of course, he didn’t look too happy, since I’ve been ignoring him all morning.  But I couldn’t do anything about it, except to reassure him that nothing was wrong.  Quickly finding my friends (since Jin Ki had noticed that none of his were around), we sat down.

Ji Eun greeted us “Annyoung Yun Hee and Jin Ki.”

“Annyoung.  How was everyone’s day so far?”

Ha Ni peeled her banana and took a bite, swallowing before speaking.

“Nothing special of course.  Like any other joheun nal.”

Hye Mi looked at the two of them irritably.

“How can you say that?  We’re eating with Jin Ki now.”

“I though you guys were used to that now,” I said amusedly.

“We are, but that’s not what she meant,” Ji Eun said.

The three of them suddenly took out something and presented them to Jin Ki all at once.  They were birthday cards.

“Saengil chugahamnida!” They all chorused.

Jin Ki smiled and thanked them, accepting each of their cards, promising to read them all later when he had time.  Hye Mi looked at me.

“And what did you get him, Yun Hee?”

I smiled sheepishly.

“I…I didn’t know it was his birthday today.”

Of course, that was a lie, but he wouldn’t find out until later.  Turning to Jin Ki, I smiled.

“Miahne oppa.  Saengil chugahae!”

And that was all I said.

Ha Ni, and Ji Eun looked at me disapprovingly.

“It’s your namja chingu’s birthday and you didn’t even know it?” Hye Mi asked.

“I guess not.  I’ll just have to pay attention next time.”

Little did Jin Ki know, my friends were just playing along with my façade.  I had told them yesterday night about my plan to surprise him.

Jin Ki smiled sightly.

“Gwen cha na.  It’s okay if you didn’t know it was my birthday today.  I didn’t tell you after all.”

“Keu rae deul…miahne.  I’ll make it up to you later, hmm?”

“Arasso.”

My friends and I simply grinned when Jin Ki wasn’t looking, and that was how the rest of lunch went.

Biology wasn’t that much different, but I went back to ignoring Jin Ki.  It wasn’t like there was any time to really talk anyway.

Once school ended, I sped out of class and took the bus home before Jin Ki could find me and send me home. After arriving home, I freshened up and went into the kitchen to make Jin Ki’s birthday cake. I was lucky today, since the homework assigned was what I had already done.  I would be able to focus on Jin Ki’s birthday tonight. Donning an apron to keep my clothes clean, I quickly took at the necessary ingredients to make the cake.  I had done this before, so it shouldn’t take too long to make this cake either.  After measuring out the proper ingredients and mixing them up, I poured the batter in a cake tin and popped it into the pre-heated oven.

While waiting for the cake to cook, I went up to my room and began wrapping the present for Jin Ki.  I had made a cd with a number of his favorite songs, and even added a few of my favorites on there as well, some of which, I had played on the piano and recorded for him.  Hopefully he would appreciate the small gift.  After wrapping up the cd, I began writing the letter that I would give him along with the cd.  I finished just in time, since the timer I had set went off as I signed my name and placed the letter into an envelope.  Going downstairs, I checked the time before taking out the cake and setting it aside to wait for it to cool down. 

Just as I took the cake out, Umma came home.

“Welcome home Umma.”

“Hello dear.  What are you making?”

“A birthday cake for Jin Ki.”

“His birthday is today?”

“Deh.  I’m making the cake for his surprise birthday party tonight.”

“I hope you have all your homework done.”

“Of course Umma.”

“Arasso.  Be safe and don’t come home too late.”

“Deh.”

Umma smiled and kissed me on the cheek before going to her bedroom to wash up and relax before dinner.

I then set on making the frosting.  It was pretty simple, just mix butter, cream cheese, vanilla, and powdered sugar together.  Once it got nice and fluffy, I stopped mixing and checked the cake.  It had cooled down by now, so it was all right to apply the frosting.

Glancing at the clock, I saw that I had a little more than two hours to finish the cake and to get ready.  Spreading on the frosting quickly but neatly, I finished it and wrote “Saengil chugha Lee Jin Ki” in some blue frosting and finished the cake off with some hearts and swirls of various colors all around the cake.  Placing the finished cake in a box, I gathered all the dirty dishes and quickly washed them, setting them on the rack to dry.  Looking at the clock again, I saw that I only had about an hour to get ready.  Taking off my apron and throwing it on the hook, I rushed up stairs to choose my outfit.

Eventually, I settled on a cream lacy top and a scrunched patterned green chiffon skirt with a lacy t.  To finish the look, I slipped on a pair of tan heeled flats. For my hair, I simply pulled back half it and waved the ends.  Checking myself in the mirror for the last time, I slipped my presents into my bag and walked downstairs. 

http://aff.ysi.bz/assets/72/061/l_p0016206172.jpg

Seeing my mom at the counter, I bid her bye and held the cake carefully before making my way out of the house.

I had to take the bus to Min Ho’s house, so I was hoping there wouldn’t be too many people this evening, and that the ride would be smooth.  No need for a cake on the ground tonight. 

Carefully stepping on the bus, I quickly found a seat and settled down for the ride.

*****

Arriving at Min Ho’s house, I pressed the door bell and stood back to wait for someone to open the door.  A middle aged woman opened it, and I assumed that she was Min Ho’s mother.  Bowing, I greeted her.

“Ah! Annyeohasaeyo.  Cho neun Kang Yun Hee imnida.  I’m a chingu of Min Ho.”

“Deh, you must be here for the Jin Ki’s surprise party, correct?”

“Deh.”

“Well, come on in then.”

“Kamsamhamnida.”

I slipped off my shoes carefully and stepped into the house.  Looking around, I saw that the living room was decorated with streamers and confetti.  There was a poster that hung on the mantle and in large letters it said: Happy Birthday Lee Jin Ki.  Walking into the kitchen, I saw that the rest of the guys were present, getting the food ready or setting up plates and cups.  Seeing Min Ho’s father, I greeted him as well.  A chorus of greetings fell down as the guys saw me enter the kitchen.

“Hey guys!”

I set the cake down on the counter and removed it from the box.

“Wow! Yun Hee made a nice cake, didn’t she?” Min Ho exclaimed, taking a look at it.

“Mm, I hope it tastes as good as it looks!” Tae Min said, his lips

I laughed and accepted the candles and Ki Bum held out to me, putting them on the cake carefully.

“I guess you guys have to wait until the birthday boy gets here to actually find that out.”

Once I had finished placing the candles, I walked around and asked if there was anything else that I could help with. 

Jong Hyun shook his head as he set the final plate on the table.

“Nope.  We’re pretty much done here.  All we have to do is get Jin Ki hyung down here, and the party can get started.”

“So, how are we going to get him here?”

Min Ho walked up to us.

“Simple,” he said, pulling out his hand phone. “I call him over here, asking about some homework assignment I didn’t get, and when he gets here, bam! The party starts.”

I nodded and agreed that was what we were going to do.

“Just one thing,” I started.

Min Ho looked at me.

“What?”

“Could you put the call on speaker mode?  I want to know how ticked off he is.”

I giggled.  Wouldn’t it be a nice surprise for him to find out that all he had to go through today was because it was his birthday?”

“Yun Hee has a point.  It would be fun,” Ki Bum added.

“Arasso, that’s what we’ll do.  Are we all done here?”

Ki Bum looked around with Jong Hyun and checked that everything was in place.

“Yup, food is set up and everything.”

“What about the living room?” I asked.

“That’s done too,” Tae Min answered.

“Arasso, let’s all go to the living room and make the call.”

So we all piled into the living room and gathered around the coffee table, waiting as Min Ho made the call to Jin Ki.  We all grew silent as Jin Ki answered the phone.

“Yeobosaeyo?”

“Jin Ki hyung! Yeobosaeyo.”

“What do you want?”

“Um, I need some help with the….Calculus homework.”

“What about it?”

“I can’t tell you over the phone.  Neomu eolyeobda.”

“Aish!  This dude.  You guys all ignore me today and just expect me to come over and help you guys like a slave?”

We all started snickering, trying to hold in our laughs, so Min Ho covered the phone’s mouth piece to prevent use from getting caught.  After we were done laughing quietly, he uncovered the phone and spoke again.

“Miahne hyung.  But, can you come right now?  It’s really important.”

Jin Ki sighed before speaking again.

“Why can’t you ask one of the other guys?”

“I did, but they’re too busy, so they can’t help me.”

“Don’t you think that I could be busy too?”

“N…no?”

“This kid!”

I couldn’t help it; I began to snicker again.  Jin Ki sounded really annoyed.  Everyone else began to snicker as well, so Min Ho was again forced to cover the mouth piece before we all calmed down.

“Yah!  Are you there?  Why do you keep on staying silent when I ask you questions?”

Min Ho cleared his throat.

“Miahne, miahne.  But hyung, could you come please?  It’s really important.”

Jin Ki sighed and contemplated for a moment before answering.

“Arasso, arasso.  I’ll be over in 10 minutes.”

“Gomawayo hyung.”

And with that, Jin Ki hung up and our mission was completed.  Jin Ki was on his way to Min Ho’s house.

Min Ho closed his phone, and we all high-fived each other for a job well done, well, for Min Ho at least. So, for the next 10 minutes, we spent the time organizing the last couple of things, getting the cake ready, and peeking out the window from behind the curtains every other second to see if he was here yet.  After a while, a car pulled up in the drive way and we scrambled to our spots.  Jong Hyun held the cake as we hurriedly got the candles ready. 

Tae Min whispered loudly.

“He’s walking up the porch, pali!”

And so in a rush, I quickly lighted all the candles and we took our places around the door as we heard the door bell ring.  Min Ho calmly walked over and opened the door slightly.

“Hyung! Thank you so much for coming.”

“Yeah yeah, let me in so I can get home sooner.”

Min Ho then threw the door wide open, and we all broke out in the birthday song.  Jin Ki’s face was priceless.  He looked so surprised as he walked through the doorway and saw all of us there singing. Jong Hyun walked forward with the cake, and when we finished singing, Jin Ki blew out the candles.

“Yah!  The reason why you guys were acting strange today was to plan this?”

We all gathered around him and grinned, nodding.

“Aish..jashiks!”

We all laughed at his expression and then herded him into the living room and toward the kitchen.  Jong Hyun set the cake down before going along with the others into the kitchen to get the food.  I began to follow too, but someone pulled me back.  Turning around, Jin Ki looked at me, grinning.

“So I guess you didn’t really forget my birthday, did you?” he said arrogantly.

“Who, me? No way.”

I grinned back.

“My friends were just playing along.”

“So does that mean you have a seonmul for me?”

I rolled my eyes.

“Keu sae...you’ll just have to wait to see, won’t you?”

I pulled him into the kitchen where everyone had sat down, waiting for us to come in to begin the meal.  I sat in between Tae Min and Ki Bum, and Jin Ki sat at the head of the table, since he was the birthday boy...er man.

It was quite fun chatting with everyone there, including Min Ho’s parents.  They were a sweet couple who treated everyone like their own children.  After we had finished our dinner, we all retreated to the living room to give Jin Ki his presents. 

Jong Hyun was the first one to give Jin Ki his present.  Opening it, Jin Ki found it to be a new Rubik’s Cube.  Some limited edition version.  Asking, I found out that Jin Ki was quite the puzzle solver, and one of his favorite puzzles was a Rubik’s Cube.  Jong Hyun said his cube was getting a bit worn up, so he got Jin Ki a new one.

Next, Ki Bum presented Jin Ki his gift.  It was a whole new outfit coordinated by Ki Bum himself.  Jin Ki thanked him, somewhat wryly, and Ki Bum waved it off, saying it was his job to make Jin Ki fashionable.  Everyone laughed at that.

Min Ho was then next one.  Jin Ki opened the present and pulled out a new camera.  I learned that Jin Ki had quite a thing for taking photographs, and he never had a proper camera, so he decided to get one for Jin Ki.

Lastly, Tae Min gave Jin Ki his gift.  Upon opening it, Jin Ki revealed a stuffed snake.  When prompted about why Tae Min got him a snake, Tae Min simply said,

“He was born in the year of a snake!”

Of course, this response just made everyone laugh.  Then everyone looked at me, waiting to see what I had given him.  I was going to answer, but was interrupted.

“Yun Hee is going to give me her gift in private, right?”

He looked at me grinning mischievously. 

“Uh, sure?”

“Aw come on Jin Ki hyung!  We want to see what she got you too!” Jong Hyun protested.

Jin Ki shook his head.

“Nope, only I get to see what she’s given me.”

“Aish, this guy!”  Ki Bum said.

Tae Min spoke up.  “Why do you want Yun Hee to give her present to you privately hyung?”

“Mm…just because.  Is there something wrong with that?”

Min Ho sighed and tried to make peace.

“Arasso, arasso.  Yun Hee can give you her present later.  It’s your birthday anyway, so we’ll relent for today.”

“We’ll probably find out what she gave later anyway,” Ki Bum said boredly, not really caring anymore.

And so, the problem was solved.  For a little while after, we sat there chatting and eating cake, but when I checked the time, it was half past 9, and I decided to go home.  We did have school tomorrow.  Standing up, I faced them all sheepishly.

“I think I have to go now.  It’s getting late.”

“Aww, do you have to go now?” Jong Hyun asked.

“Deh.  My parents are expecting me at home.  Miahne.  But before I go, I should help clean up.”

The guys stood up protesting.

“Aniyo! You’ve helped enough, so don’t worry about it,” Min Ho assured.

Ki Bum also agreed. “It’s fine.  We can clean it up just fine.  It’s not much anyway.”

“But don’t you all have to go home too?  It’d be faster if I helped?”

“No, its’ fine,” Jong Hyun said.  “We’re sleeping over at Min Ho’s house tonight, so it’s not a problem.”

“Are you sure?’

Tae Min nodded.  “Gwen cha na Yun hee.  We can take care of it.”

He turned to Jin Ki.

“Hyung, why don’t you take Yun Hee home?  You can take her in your car.”

Jin Ki nodded and stood up, herding me toward the door.

“Kaja Yun Hee ah.  The guys said you don’t have to clean up.”

“But—!”

“No buts.  They said it’s fine. Anyway, thank you guys for the awesome bday party!”

The rest of the guys nodded their heads and waved bye, ushering us out the door.  I quickly said good bye to them and Min Ho’s parents, before being pulled out the door by Jin Ki.

Once we made it down the steps, he stopped pulling me and simply walked by my side to his car.  Opening the door, he let me get inside before closing it and going over to his side.  Starting the engine, he drove off to take me home.

How was the first part? Wondering what Jin Ki's reaction will be to Yun Hee's gift?

Stay tuned to the next part, which I will for sure update tomorrow (I Hope...-.-')

See you all later!

shawol4lifeminnie: Haha, I'm glad you like my style of writing.  It's always a process in the making, but it's getting there :D

Iheartlife: I hope you liked this update!

Lorena: Very cute :D

jay_rose: You are quite right.  The chapter was about Onew's birthday :D

theclumsywitch: You're reading it over? Wow, I'm touched ^^ Thanks for giving so much love to this story!

ForeverInLove: Wow, a nice string of guesses there ^^ And yes, you got it right!

starlove: Paying attention doesn't hurt at all..unless it's something you really don't need to know xD

amyra961: I'm glad this chapter made your day! Me happy :D

--iluvreading--: So, was your guess right? hehe. 

onsangtae: Yeah, I liked reading long stories all in one sitting too...it makes it better :D

rialoves: It's sweet when couples tell each other how they fell for each other, isn't it :D

crazy4you: It's okay~ Thanks for commenting this time!

Vengeance: Yeah, hear to heart conversations are always the best. I hope you liked this chapter!

pResTige: Yeah, I would love to have a mature relationship like Yun Hee and Jin Ki.

MissLOLA1412: You want more heart to heart conversations like this...call! :D