79. DAY 9 NOBILITY

As usual Puppy woke up first. I wanted to sleep more but the thought of kids finding us sleeping together was not palatable, and the thought of sleeping apart was even worse. We got up and surveyed the soundly sleeping group, counting.

In the restroom, Puppy embraced me and began pecking my lips. I nipped his lips to remind him how long it had been since our last proper kiss. Puppy checked and we had the showers to ourselves. He closed the restroom door and pulled me inside a shower stall. It was one of our fastest and best quickie. Once he let go of my thighs, we did shower also, soaping each other. We were grinning and humming as we playfully shaved each other.

Kibum came and was surprised to see us almost ready and dressed. “Wierdoes,” he mumbled seeing our happy faces. When I winked at him his eyes opened wide, “You didn’t hyung!” I winked again. He whined, “Why do I miss all the fun? Now children are waking up and there is no time.”

Puppy smirked at him, “You and Tae hyung need to indulge in more extreme sports.” And we left him standing with his mouth wide open staring at our retreating backs.

True to Bummie’s words, kids were waking up. Sehun and Minx were talking. “What do they talk about all the time yeobo?” Puppy asked me. I shrugged. It was a mystery to me too. Kai was jumping in place whining at Sehun to stop talking and go to the restroom with him. He was Kibum’s clone in this matter, not wanting to visit the restrooms alone. Amber was sleeping between DongHae and Hyukkie with both of them draping their arms protectively over her sleeping form.

Duckie and Byong were bouncing on half-awake Heechul and Siwon. Puppy swooped and picked up both of them to hug them tightly. They squealed in delight and kissed his cheeks. Their laughter woke up everyone. Imo and umma first brushed their hair before moving off their sleeping bags. The three sisters finger-brushed their hair and applied lipstick. We stared at them in wonder.

It was an hour by the time our group was ready for breakfast. We stowed our bags in the bus and went back into the Discovery Cube for our last exhibit – Science of Ice Hockey. We took turns to be goalie, strikers and broadcasters. We learnt the laws of motion as they applied to ice. It was a great fun and learning experience for all of us. We had difficulty dragging away Tae from the Zamboni machine.

Kai and Sehun wanted to visit the Quake Shack again. That caught Tae’s attention and he rushed off with the kids. Ji and Siwon hurried after them. After weathering another simulated earthquake, our disaster-hungry group was herded into the bus by uncle. There was loud chattering about the hockey fun all the way to our next stop. It took us about 20 minutes only.

We arrived at Disney World and kids forgot the Cube. They squealed when it was revealed we were staying in Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa. All the females in the group joined the squealing. Not to our surprise, Heechul began jumping on his seat. Taemin and Kibum were watching the grandeur of the hotel. They’d never imagined we’d book rooms in such a hotel. Puppy, Uncle and Siwon high fived each other.

We’d reworked the room allotments to accommodate the sisters without booking any extra room. It was not a high guest volume season, due to which we were able to change the bed arrangements of two rooms. As the three planners checked us in, the rest of us marveled at the 6-storey high ceiling of the lobby and its stately wood and stone work. We pointed out the American style craftsmanship to the children so they could see the difference between the traditional Korean houses.

We checked in and put our luggage in the rooms. Children immediately gathered in one room’s balcony to see the rooftops of Disney Adventure Park. The colorful domes and castle roofs kept them occupied.

Puppy, I, Sehun, Byong and Umma were sharing one room. Siwon, Heechul, Duckie, Minx and Nicole were next door to us. On our other side were Imo, Soo, Jiyeon, Krystal and Jessica. Next to them were Taemin, Kibum, Kai and Uncle. Last in our room row were HyukHae, Amber and Doc.

Byong and Duckie lost interest in the view and began bouncing on the beds. They liked HyukHae’s bed the most as it was the largest of all to accommodate all three of them. Earlier Puppy and I were going to use that room with our 3 kids but gave it to HyukHae and Amber to use instead.

We freshened up quickly and went for lunch at Storyteller Café. Its huge murals were amazing. The wooden décor, the intricacy of the restaurant and the hotel had us enthralled. We were going to stay two nights there and our minds were whirring with specific activities we wanted to do, apart from the engrossing Disney Land wonders.

Umma and imo started discussing spa therapies. Imo had brought the spa brochure from her room. During lunch they pored over it and decided on what they wanted. Imo and umma went with Puppy to make reservations. It was our gift to the two most wonderful women in our lives.

Jessica, Nicole and Krystal went along to book sessions for themselves. Doc offered to book one for Soo, but she refused. Kibum and Heechul skipped off after the spa group, entreating them to wait as they wanted to enjoy it too. Heechul pulled Amber with him. She kept protesting, but he insisted that as a teenager she needed a beauty treatment.

We had kept the itinerary for DisneyWorld flexible. We put it to the children what they wanted to do first. Unanimous choice was prince and princess makeovers. Puppy returned with Amber informing that immediate appointments were available for others. Amber had refused to budge and Heechul had finally given up and gone along happily with Kibum.

We went for the children’s makeover. Soo agreed to become the fairy godmother. Ji, Minx, Amber and Duckie went for a full princess package with makeovers and carriage rides and play sessions. We let them have a free reign. It was their day and they decided on their hairdos, makeup, dresses and everything. Kai, Byong and Sehun became valiant knights and the older boys were soon happily fighting with their swords.

Byong went to his play partner and poked her hard with the sword. Duckie wailed in pain and he tried to kiss her into silence. She took his sword and poked him back. When he cried, she silenced him with kisses. Then they decided we made better targets and began taking turns poking us with the sword. Finally Siwon took the sword from them and handed them the two magic wands we had picked up on the way for ourselves. Soon there were Harry Potter and other nonsense magic spells waved at us.

The girls emerged looking like Princesses. Soo took Jinri for her makeover. Everyone had chosen different dresses and hairdos. They posed for photographs singly and in group and then climbed into carriage and went for role play sessions with the boys. They looked so beautiful and handsome. I thought it was good Heechul and Kibum were missing this or there would be waterworks from both.

By the time kids finished with their role plays, the spa group had joined us, looking just as when they’d parted. I couldn’t see any difference no matter how much I blinked, tilted my head or narrowed my eyes. Umma gave me a whack for my efforts. I kissed her cheeks and informed her she’d always be the most beautiful woman for me.

We took the welcome tour which showed us all the major parts of the two parks. At the end of three hours, children had decided on all the areas they wanted to revisit during our stay. We hurried to Paradise Pier for our dinner date with Disney’s world of colors. It was our tryst with beautiful Disney music accompanied by fire, fountain, laser and fog effects.

We sat outdoors on the waterfront and had a delicious Asian and Cajun dinner while watching the show. It kept the little ones in their seats. As soon as it was over, the two climbed into our laps for a sleepy dinner which they had to be almost force fed.

Tae, Heechul, Hyukkie, Doc and I ordered beer to accompany our dinner. Sisters joined us in drinking. Puppy kept warning everyone to control as the rooms were shared for next two nights. He remembered the experimentation by HyukHae. Tae wanted to play strip poker with Kibum. We laughed as Uncle whacked Tae who jumped up and began yelling that he was kidding.

Fearsome Four asked us the meaning of strip poker. Puppy answered with a straight face, “It is when you strip your opponents of all the money. And it is legal to play only after the age of 20.” I grinned at him. He was a pro at such answers now, after answering a host of embarrassing questions by Minx since Byong’s birth. DongHae shot him a relieved look of thanks.

When we reached our rooms, we tucked in sleeping Duckie and Byong in Heechul’s room. Fearsome Four decided to play monopoly there with Ji while watching Disney programs and movies on tv. The rest of us went next door into my room. We had a rousing game of passing the parcel. The kids had written a number of punishments for us. I had to tell a joke and as usual I made a hash of it by forgetting the punch line and then making up my own. No one laughed except Puppy and me.

Heechul had to kiss the girl he liked. He got up and kissed imo on her cheeks. Siwon to kiss the mirror. Umma had to sing a duet. She sang with imo. Soo had to propose to someone. She selected me. Puppy kept interrupting her to remind that I belonged to him and she to Doc. Heechul and Kibum teased Leeteuk that he had been ignored by Soo.

Our games and fun continued till the kids came in to inform they were sleepy. Everyone dispersed to their rooms. We decided to let Byong sleep where he was and Minx would sleep in our room. Umma had planned to sleep on the single’s bed, but we were not comfortable to let Minx and Sehun in one bed, umma slept with Minx while Sehun took the single’s bed. Puppy and I shared the bed. Puppy kept offering to sleep with Minx so I could sleep with umma, but she shushed him down.

As we switched off the lights, umma fell asleep immediately. Sehun and Minx who were sleeping near to each other began whispering about the day and their reactions. Puppy and I quietly listened. This was our chance to know what the two constantly chattered about. They talked about Kai and Amber and how good they looked together when Knight Kai escorted Princesses Amber during role play. They wondered if there was an interest between the two. They talked about the places they wanted to visit the next day. They talked about Heechul’s penchant for Disney nicknames. Even my naming techniques were discussed. They wondered what they’d name their kids.

We listened as Sehun went silent after sixth name and Minx’s deep breaths could be heard soon after. Puppy and I looked at each other in silence trying to digest what we’d heard. We went out into the balcony. Puppy sat in the chair and pulled me onto his lap. We sat looking at the beautifully lit rooftops of the wonderland before us. We cuddled and talked about our kids. We accepted the fact that together we were having an almost fairy tale life. We shared quick kisses and softly laughed at our predicament. I took a photograph of us as a reminder of the magical night.

“Jagi remember all the nights when I stood talking with you in imo’s balcony?” I smiled at the memory.

“We really had unique phone dates yeobo. We talked as much as Minx and Sehun.” Puppy grinned at our phone dates. “I am sure Minx wouldn’t have 10 kids because first two or three will make it difficult to have more.”

We laughed at his reasoning and lazily talked more till I began to feel sleepy. We went in and snuggled into our bed and fell instantly asleep, facing each other and holding hands. Could our life be any more full of love and wonder?