Chapter 6: An Unexpected Visitor

I threw open the door as Choi MinJoon and Oh SooMin followed behind carrying our haul from the convenience store down the block. They rushed past me with a giggle as they began to unpack the items on the small table in my living room. It made my heart warm to see the two girls so happy.

MinJoon attended a prestigious all girls school and had been having a difficult time with her classmates talking behind her back and making fun of her. She was 14, a year older than SooMin, and in every way was her contrast. Where SooMin was pale MinJoon had a golden complexion; the older girl’s face had begun to mature and was losing the roundness of childhood while the younger’s cheeks were still full.

SooMin attended a co-ed middle school and had until recently been fairly popular and well-liked among her friends. . .until they had all “discovered” boys. Now that was all her friends wanted to talk about was kissing and dating; some of the girls even began to talk about her oppa and how “y” he was which made SooMin uncomfortable and mad. Her friends thought she was being a baby and dropped her like a hot potato.

Knowing these two girls were sharing a similar experience, I decided to bring them together. I had invited them both over for a girl’s night filled with pampering, drama watching, and, of course, junk food.

I lit some eucalyptus-mint scented aromatherapy candles. I’d originally bought them to help me unwind at the end of a long day at work, but the girls just thought they were a fun idea.

Munching on their goodies, the girls sat on the floor with their backs leaning against my sofa.

“Unnie, is it okay if SooMin and I watch a few music videos before we start the drama?”

“Sure, that’s fine with me. Which group are you going to start with?”

“VIXX of course!” they said simultaneously then laughter roared between them.

It had been slightly awkward between the two when I’d first introduced them about an hour ago, but as soon as SooMin noticed MinJoon’s Leo pin on her bag, the two had been chatting non-stop about their favorite groups and their bias (and in some cases biases) in each.

Their fangirling over music idols was cute and reminded me of my favorite groups when I’d been in middle and high school, Shinhwa, Super Junior, SS501. . . Wow! I had a thing for S bands I guess. . .

As they chattered and sighed and squealed, I removed the pre-made frozen cookie dough we’d got from the store. Soon the aroma of chocolate chip cookies replaced the eucalyptus-mint scent of the candles. They could have gone on for hours in their bubble, but I knew exactly how to draw them out from it: cookies + Kim SooHyun in You Who Came from the Stars. It was a perfect equation for getting any teen girl’s attention.

When the episode started, we took our our polishes from the store and began to paint each other’s finger and toe nails.

“Unnie, thanks for having us over,” MinJoon said.

“Yes, thank you unnie! It’s nice to be away from SeHun oppa. I’d never be able to do this with him or any other boy around!”

“No kidding!” replied MinJoon. “But. . . If Leo were here, I’d totally let him give me a pedicure!”

We all laughed in understanding and spent the rest of the night being ridiculous as we cheered and booed and experienced “the feels” of the episode. We tried our best to keep straight faces and relax as we lounged around with facial masks on, but the giggles kept managing to escape.

After three episodes and almost a liter of ice cream, the two teens fell asleep on the sofa. I tucked them in and turned out the light before going to bed myself.

“Unnnnnie. . .”

A low moan had awoken me around 2AM.

“Unnnnnie. . .” It came again from the living room.

I got out of bed and walked towards the moan.

“Unnnnnie. . .”

Who’s making that sound? Is it SooMin or MinJoon?

I a the small lamp beside the sofa. The light revealed a fast asleep SooMin and a trembling MinJoon.

“MinJoon,” I whispered. “Are you not feeling well? Are you hurt? What’s wrong sweetie?”

“Unnie. . . I’m--I’m--I’m scared. I’m so scared. And I’m dizzy and tingly all over. I want oppa. C--C--Can you call oppa for me?”

“Sure MinJoon-ah, but first can you tell me what’s wrong? Maybe it’s something I can help with?”

A tear rolled down her cheek. “It’s n-n-nothing. Just--just--just p-p-please call oppa for me and ask him to come here,” she pleaded as more tears escaped.

“Okay sweetie. I will,” I her hair as I dialed MinHo’s number.

As we both anxiously waited for him to come, I tried my best to comfort MinJoon by rubbing back and holding her hand, but inspite of my best efforts, she continued to shake like a leaf and every now and then a whispered, “Oppa,” would escape from her lips.

Soon a knock came and I hurried to answer it. A second later, MinHo’s presence filled the room. He quickly assessed the situation and took charge issuing orders in a soft but firm tone.

“Let’s move SooMin first so we don’t disturb her.” Then ever so gently he picked up the girl and put her on my bed.

“Now please get me a cool rag and a glass of juice please.”

“She needs carbs of some kind, something that breaks down quickly, so she can get something in her bloodstream.”

Once everything was in place, MinHo tended to his sister. MinJoon leaned against him in a contented way while MinHo’s strong arm wrapped around her with a protecting air. I loved that this big brother and small sister knew how to love and care for each other. It was a pleasant little picture to behold. I wanted to give them some privacy so I went to go check on SooMin.

When I came back the feeling of worry had been replaced with calm. On the sofa lay MinJoon, her still eyes puffy from her tears and lack of sleep, with her head on MinHo’s lap who, while he talked, smoothed the forehead of his precious dongsaeng.  As he did so MinHo kept repeating in a soothing tone:

“It’s okay MinJoon-ah. Oppa’s here. Oppa’s here.”

MinJoon was the product of her father’s second marriage late in his life and was MinHo’s half-sister, but they looked so similar that any passerby would think they were full siblings. Unlike SeHun, MinHo tried his best to spend time with his sister and shower her with love and affection. Watching the two of them interact reminded me so much of the relationship I had with my own brother, my very own oppa, HyunJoon. What I’d seen tonight had definitely changed the way I saw MinHo. My heart somehow reached out to him but I couldn’t figure out in what way. Respect? Admiration? Friendship? . . . Love?

No, I immediately shook the thought away. Focus on the task at hand and don’t get distracted HyeYeong.

Soon the girl lay asleep on the sofa while MinHo and I sat at the table sharing a cup of tea. A faint glow on the horizon signaled that the sun would rise soon. We sat in silence as we both processed the events of the past few hours.

“Bet this was not what you had planned for a Friday night was it?” I asked with a chuckle as I sipped my drink.

He responded with his own small laugh, “You could definitely say that again.”

Silence came again as we both stared across each other’s shoulders. The adrenaline had worn off and fatigue was setting in, but for some reason I wanted to keep talking to MinHo. I wanted his voice to lull me to sleep like he’d done for MinJoon.

“MinHo, can--can I ask about what happened to MinJoon tonight?”

Several minutes of deliberation passed before he nodded his head with a decision, “Sure. Just remember, this is MinJoon’s situation, not mine, so I feel like she should tell you about it, but since she can’t right now and you experienced it with her. . . Ask what you want, and I’ll do my best to answer your questions. ”

“I only have a few. First, what was that thing called?”

“The doctors call it a panic attack. The best way I can describe it is you’re going along with your day and everything is normal then out of nowhere you suddenly feel overwhelmingly scared.”

“Can I ask what triggers them? Like did I do or say something tonight that upset her?”

He shook his head as he sipped his tea. “No, HyeYeong. You didn’t do anything, neither did SooMin. Like I said, they happen at the most random times and for the most unexplainable of reasons.”

“Has she always been like this?”

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