The new house was so bright.  The large windows welcomed the sunshine and filled every surface and corner of each room with a beautiful gleam.  I couldn't help but smile as I peered out of the glass opening and admired the area surrounding me.  The neighborhood appeared very isolated, yet each house on the street showed wealth and beauty.  I could see children in gardens and wives hanging out washing and smiling, yet I couldn't help but feel a layer of secrecy and confidentiality under their perfect composure.  One wife looked up at the window while speaking with another wife and both ladies smiled up at me.  Clearly they were gossiping about the new family upon the block.  I was surprised that they were as curious of us as I was about them.  I smiled back and waved cheerfully.

"Ma'am, may I enter?" I heard a knock at my bedroom door.  Shocked, I opened the door immediately and greeted...  a maid?

"Omo, you don't have to do that, I can tidy the house fine," I chirped.  The maid stared back at me like she had just been hit with a brick.  Awkward, I mumbled, "I mean...  would you like any help?  This is the first household I've owned so I didn't really expect Jungsu-ssi to hire any help."

"M...  Mr. Park gave me strict orders to clear every part of the house, ma'am, I don't think it would be very professional for me to have the lady of the house help me with my chores," the girl blushed and lowered her head.  She looked about my age.  She was taller than me and very beautiful but her hair was pulled up in a tight ponytail and the skin on her fingers looked raw as if she had been scrubbing for hours.  I stared at her face and felt deep sympathy for the girl.  Had Jungsu released his wrath on her?  Did she always look so gloomy or was she just severely intimidated by Jungsu?  I hoped we could be friends, I didn't want her time here to be as miserable as she clearly thought it would be.

Fetching the washing basket from her arms, I smiled brightly, "Why don't we go downstairs?  I don't really have dirty clothes to place in here since I arrived in my wedding dress yesterday," I gestured towards the dress hanging from the wardrobe door, "but I can take the washing in the basket down and we can get to know each other if you'd like?"

The girl's face lit up and she nodded her head enthusiastically before we both made our way together downstairs and into the kitchen.  I realised that yesterday I never actually went into the kitchen.  It was huge!  It was the same layout of the office upstairs - the room was square shaped with many cupboards and a long stretch of work-surface going along the center of every wall.  A rectangle island sat elegantly in the centre of the room.  On the far end of the wall, much like the office, there was also a door.  The maid lead us through the door and I was surprised to see a laundry room.  It sported racks and washing machines and tumble driers.  A small table with four chairs stated it's presence in the middle of the room while a long table stood between the washing machine and tumble drier offering washing up liquid, fabric softener and many other cleaning essentials.  The walls were a pale blue and the floor was a covered in glistening white tiles.  The room was bright but I felt quite sad that it was clear the maid must be quite lonely in here.

I asked the maid to go collect a deck of cards from my bedroom while I started the first load of washing.  Separating the light clothing from the coloured clothing, I watched her skip out of the room.  I felt deeply intrigued towards the girl.  I wanted to get to know her, I wanted to know why she'd be interested in working for anyone as dark hearted as Park Jungsu.  I hoped it was something more credible than the expected 'Because he's hot' that most fangirls would most likely reply with.  I wonder if she was a fan of his father's entertainment company.

"Ma'am, can I get you a drink?"

"Ani, I'll get that - have a seat and I'll be back in a second," I ushered the girl to sit down and ran out the door, allocating the fridge and rummaging through it's contents.  I poured two glasses of cranberry juice and took my place on a chair opposite the girl.  She smiled and collected her glass from my hand.  I noticed that she had already dealt the cards and upon picking up my deck, I started my investigation.

"So, what's your name?  We'll probably be seeing a lot of eachother so we should be friends - you can call me Hyojin."

"Ahh, I...  I wouldn't like to be inappropriate, Mrs. Park."  It was the first time anyone had called me that and it slapped me like a wet fish.  Choking on my cranberry juice, I cupped my hand over my mouth and gestured for the girl to continue.  "My name is Lee Miyung, ma'am.  I came to work within this household due to my father's influence.  He has a high position within a construction company, ma'am.  He designed this house."

We spoke for a long while.  Miyung told me what it was like to be a maid.  We shared our experiences of growing up and I realised that we had very similar upbringings.  Miyung stated that she was often never allowed to leave her house and was kept away from any possible dangers.  This shocked me greatly as she appeared to be the type of girl who would be very popular.  Miyung was very beautiful and her glossy hair and manicured nails appeared to be well pampered rather than the results of a lonely girl and her own utensils.

The washing machine beeped.  "Aniyo, let me get it," I smiled brightly and stood to retrieve the washing.  It was then that I noticed something.  Something that I wished I hadn't saw at all.  It left me curious and eager to find out more about Lee Miyung.  Upon lifting the washing basket from the table to collect the wet clothing, I heard a crinkling sound.  I picked the washing basket up and peered underneath it to find a neatly taped-in-place collage of Jungsu.  The collection of photographs left me deeply confused and I was so determined to discover what their purpose was but when I was about to ask Miyung, I heard the door slam closed.

"Yahh!  Hyojin, get down here!"  I apologised to Miyung for the sudden outburst but quickly ran out of the room and towards the lounge room where Jungsu stood confidently in front of the window.  "Get your bags, we can go on a honeymoon now."

The words took me greatly by surprise.  I stared at Jungsu before stammering, "I...  I don't understand...  where are we going?"

"Jeju Island, hurry up and get your bags - I won't wait long."

I didn't need the threat.  Within seconds I was racing up to the third floor and bursting through my bedroom door.  I couldn't stop smiling - Jeju Island looked so beautiful, I had long dreamt of stepping foot upon it's wonderous sights!  Dragging my bags downstairs, I giggled and exclaimed, "I'm ready, let's go, let's go!"

Jungsu looked highly unamused with my childish reaction but I couldn't help it nor did I care at that moment.  All thoughts of Miyung were suddenly replaced with mental images of clear waters and wild flowers and peaceful waterfalls.  The images were nothing compared to what awaited me.  Jungsu placed his suitcase in the back of the car and I'm positive he was about to walk away until a man walked out of one of the neighboring houses and immediately Jungsu smiled while placing my suitcase beside his.  I was taken aback even more when he linked arms with mine and opened the car door for me to take my seat.  I stared at him but did as he gestured.  The man who sat in the car beside me was a completely different person.  He looked sour and unattached and I knew it would take me a long time to get used to the dual persona of Park Jungsu.

Disregarding the negativity, I looked forward to the adventures ahead of me.  I relaxed into the seat and watched the houses fly by as Sungmin began the lengthy drive to Incheon airport.

--

[A/N: Annyeong-haseyo! \(●⁰౪⁰●\)(//●⁰౪⁰●)//

Hmmmm, so what's the deal with this Lee Miyung character?  ╰(°ㅂ°)╯  I wonder what awaits her role in the story-line? โ๏∀๏ใ  Let me know what you guys think of the new character and the vibes you feel from her so far!  (*•̀ᴗ•́*)و ̑̑

I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter.  I've been bombarded with a lot of studying that needs done for college and trying to balance that while also working within a nursery is certainly taking a toll on my writing.  I'm trying very hard not to let my other activities [while not writing] effect my fanfic, but each week when I work on the new chapter I can't help but feel that this is happening.  Please tell me honestly if you feel that I'm not giving my all or if you feel I could do better in any way.  Constructive criticism is very important in order to be successful, I feel.  So please let me know if there is anything bothering you within the story.  I'd like to know.  If I don't know then I can't fix it and I'd be upset if I lost any readers due to something I could have fixed easily.  ٩(๑∂▿∂๑)۶♡ 

I'm so thankful towards all of my readers.  There are three readers who mail me often and I'm especially thankful towards those as they help me grow as a writer.  I'd like to think of all my readers as my friends and I hope they feel the same towards me.  I hope everyone has had a lovely weekend so far and I look forward to posting a new update for you all next Sunday!  Please keep healthy and happy. ◦°˚\(´°౪°`)/˚°◦

Love and light,

-Kang Hyekyo~ (❛ัॢᵕ❛ั ॢ)✩*ೃ.⋆ ]