Fresh Start
My Perfect Stranger 
"Have a nice day at school, boys!" I waved at them as they ran off into the school building. I drove off after seeing them go in.
I was on my way to work when I got distracted by the radio.
'The next song that's coming up is quickly climbing the charts. We've been getting requests all morning. There's no doubt that we'll be hearing more from this artist. Next on the countdown, 'Crazy' by Kim Jonghyun.'
I groaned as I changed the station. There was no hiding it. I had to talk to Nicole about everything that was happening. I called her earlier to meet up at a coffee shop before work.
When I arrived, I saw her sitting in the back on her phone. As I got closer, she stood up to hug me.
"Key! It feels like it's been forever. How's everything going? You've kept me out of the loop."
I smiled nervously as I sat down. "Yeah....about that. There are some things you need to know."
"Wait, first I want to know what's going on with you and Minho?" I smiled fondly. "Ooooh! I know that smile. Now, talk!"
"Well, we went on another date a couple of days ago. It was great. I told him about the kids-"
Her eyes widened. "You did what?! How did he take it?"
"He took it surprisingly well. He's very understanding."
"I told you so~."
I rolled my eyes. "I guess you did."
"Did the date lead to anything?"
"Um....well...," I blushed, "we kissed."
She gasped. "On the cheek, or...."
"On the lips."
She squealed from excitement. "I am so proud of you! I knew he would be the man of your dreams. Have you told your mom and dad yet?"
I paused. I really didn't think about it. "Well, I think it's too early to be meeting the family, don't you think?"
"But Key, your mom has always told you she's ready for you to move on."
"Exactly, my mom did. Not my father. If you haven't noticed, he's not the nicest guy around town."
"Oh, don't make it sound like your dad doesn't care."
I sighed. "I know he cares, Cole, but let's not forget who kicked me out the house when I was pregnant the second time."
Flashback.
I nervously walked to the living room where both of my parents were with my 3 month old, Taemin. They smiled as I made my entrance, but I knew those smiles were going to be replaced with disappointed frowns soon.
"Hey, umma. H-hey, appa. I need to talk to you two."
My dad gave a concerned glance. "What's wrong, Kibum?"
I sighed. "There's no easy way to say this."
It really wasn't. It took forever for me and my dad to be on speaking terms after he found out I was pregnant with Taemin. I know he loves me, but he's just very strict and can be quite intimidating at times."
"Go ahead and tell us."
My voice shook. "U-ummm.... I'm... I'm 2 months pregnant..."
Silence fell upon us. I stared at my dad's face for a reaction, but I saw none. This was scarier than anything.
He stood up slowly and walked towards me. "Appa-"
"30 days. You have 30 days to be out of here."
"Huh? Appa, what are you saying?"
"I'm saying that I'm kicking you out. I thought you'd learn your lesson from the first time, Kibum. But here you go again IN THE SAME DAME PREDICAMENT!"
I jumped in surprise at his shout. My voice quivered. "A-Appa, please! It wasn't my fault! I was set up! Jonghyun did this on purpose. You got to believe me!"
"Jonghyun?! I thought me and your mother told you to stop seeing him!"
I looked down in guilt. I forgot I was sneaking around to see him. "I'm sorry, Appa, but please don't kick me out! I won't have anywhere else to go!" Tears welled up in my eyes. I looked to my mom with hope. "Umma? Aren't you going to say something?!"
"Yah! Don't talk to your umma that way! Now, you knew the rules. No seeing Jonghyun. And definitely no getting pregnant again. You're 17, Kibum! Wasn't getting pregnant at 16 enough?!"
Tears streamed down my face. "How can you do this to your only son?! What type of father are you?!"
"What type of son are YOU to raise your voice at me and disobey my rules?! You're two months pregnant! That means just one month after having your baby, you went you having again with that . I don't want to have anything to do with you!"
"Why huh? Because of your ing image?! You shouldn't give two s about what anyone thinks except for me!"
"Did you just curse at me?! You know what? You're disowned! You're not welcomed to be a part of this family anymore!"
I looked at him like he was crazy. What he said to me was unforgivable. Never in my life did I think that my dad would ever say something like that. I put a serious tone to my voice.
"I hope you know that if I leave, I'm never coming back."
He stared at me before saying, "Pack your bags."
I backed away before shouting, "Y'know, sometimes I wish you weren't my dad!" I ran to my mom and snatched my baby out of her hands.
I called Jonghyun and his family came to help me move out that night into their house. I will be forever grateful for Jonghyun and his family.
Though me and Jonghyun weren't in the best of places, he comforted me in his arms as I cried that night.
Flashback end.
"But that's the past, Key-"
I smacked my lips. "You'll never understand. I will always remember those hurtful words he said to me."
"You guys are better now, right?"
"Yeah, only because of my kids. If it wasn't for them, our relationship would still be basically nonexistent."
"So you don't think you'll ever talk to your dad about Minho?"
"I don't know. I mean, we talk more now, but I can't connect with him anymore. I could barely connect with him when I was young."
"Maybe that's something you need to talk about with your mom and try to talk with your dad. You might regret it if it's too late."
I sighed defeatedly because she was right. "You're right. I'll talk to them soon."
"So what's going on in your life besides love?"
"More baby daddy drama."
She rolled her eyes. "Ugh, don't tell me Jonghyun's doing more stupid ."
"Bingo."
"What did he do this time?"
"He got mad because he smelled Minho's cologne on me. He kept saying that I was his and he would make Minho's life a living hell or whatever. He even punched the wall right beside my face. He really shook me up, Nicole."
"You were scared? It was that bad?"
"Yeah. Sadly, the boys heard a good amount of it. The good thing that came from it is they said they didn't mind me dating and even want to me Minho."
"Aww~, I swear I love those boys to death."
I smiled. "Yeah, me too. I just wish Jonghyun wasn't as crazy as he is. Maybe I wouldn't mind family outings here or there, but he would definitely take it the wrong way. Ugh, I just want things to be ok."
She sighed. "You'll be ok, Key. You're strong. I know you can handle it. Just do it for your boys....and Minho. I know you're used to doing things alone, but it's ok to ask for help. I know he will help you."
"I guess so." I checked my watch to see it was time for me to go. "Well, I need to hurry and go to work."
"Ok. Well, it was nice catching up with you. Please keep me updated."
I stood up and hugged her. "Don't worry, I will. Bye, Cole."
As I made my way to work, Nicole's advice about my parents was stuck in my mind. It's not like I don't want to move on from the situation, but my dad really hurt me. My mom did as well because she didn't stand up for me. What kind of mother just sits silently as her only child is getting kicked out?
My relationship with my parents is definitely better now than it was back then. We just need to work on some things before I can actually move on.
When I arrived to work on the Music Bank set (I work at lots of places as a stylist), I decided to call my mom.
"Hello? Hi, Kibum."
"Hey, umma."
"Did something happen with the kids?" That's lately been the only reason why I've called.
"No. Actually I'm calling because I want to talk to you and appa alone today."
"Your dad, too? Honey, he will be excited that you want to talk to him."
"What I need to talk about isn't too exciting."
Her excitement died down. "Oh? Well what do you need to talk about with the both of us?"
"I'll tell you when I get there. I was just calling to see if it was ok if I came there after work."
"Yeah, sure."
"Thanks, umma."
"Honey, your appa says he wants to speak with you."
"Well I'm at work now, I'll see ya later."
"But, honey-"
"Bye."
I hurriedly hung up the phone before my dad could get it. It's not like I hate him or anything, I just don't feel comfortable talking to him on the phone with all of these thoughts in my head.
I did my best to get through work efficiently so I can go home quicker. My mood must have reflected how I felt because some of my clients noticed my attitude.
"Key?" Minah asked as I touched up her face.
"Hmm," I answered with a stoic expression.
"Are you ok?"
"Why would you ask that?"
"Well, you usually act more bubbly and talkative. Today, you seem more standoffish."
I sighed as I put the makeup brush down. "I'm just going through a lot, Minah. You shouldn't worry though. You have a performance to worry about. But thanks for your concern."
I gave her a hug and sent her off to be with her group. Only two more hours before I can leave.
When I finally had a break, I got a call from someone I really didn't feel like talking to.
"What is it, Jonghyun? Haven't you ruined my life enough?"
He sighed on the other end. "I want to apologize, Bummie." There goes that name again.
"Is this a joke? Am I getting punked?"
"Listen, what I did was wrong."
"Which was?"
"Getting aggressive and putting my hands on you. I shouldn't have punched the wall so close to your beautiful face, or grabbed you or shoved you so roughly. I'm sorry for that." He sounded very genuine.
I decided to commend him for that. "Well, I guess you're forgiven. But what about the things you said to me? You're not going to apologize for that or for threatening Min-.... I mean, that guy I was talking about?" That was close.
"I'm only apologizing for what I feel I can apologize for. The words I said, I meant every word of it. You are mine, Bummie. I'm not going to let an outsider get in between our family. So if this guy knew what's best for him, he'd stay away."
I sighed irritatedly. "Jonghyun, please stop calling me Bummie. Also, I'm getting tired of having to keep telling you to stop running my life."
"Then stop saying it and let it happen."
"You're unbelievable. I can't believe I actually loved you at one point."
"Ouch. It hurts when you pretend like you still don't love me. Let's not forget who took you in when your parents kicked you out."
"Let's not forget who as the cause of that happening, Jonghyun. I could never love you like I used to."
"Heh, oh really? Then why am I able to conjure such emotions from you? Love, hate, anger. If you didn't still love me, you wouldn't care."
"Honestly, I'm ready to get off the phone now. Thanks for wasting my break."
"Anytime. When are we ever going to hang out?"
"When you get some damn sense."
"Duly noted. Alright, I don't want to hold you up. I just want you to know I really am sorry for getting violent with you. I never wanted to hurt you."
"It's ok, Jonghyun. Just please stop with the crazy antics."
"I can't make any promises, especially WHEN I find out who this guy is."
"And there you go with the antics. Bye, Jong."
I didn't give him time to hang up before I pressed the end button. I honestly don't know what imma do with him. It seems like the only way I can escape him is if I end up dead. But there's no way I'm going to kill myself when I have kids to think about."
I happily waved goodbye to all of my coworkers when I was done. I knew they could tell it was a fake smile, but I'm happy they didn't stop me.
I drove to my parents house nervously. I clenched and unclenched the steering wheel out of anxiety. Me and my parents haven't had a serious talk in a long time. I'm not even sure if you could call us a family anymore. Don't get me wrong, they're great grandparents. They love my children to death. It's just, it's so hard to have that unbreakable bond we used to have.
I know some of it is my fault. If I wasn't such an unruly teen, maybe none of this would have happened. Then again, if it never would have happened, I wouldn't have had my babies. I would never trade them for anything in the world. I would sacrifice anything to keep them around.
It was a long ride to my parents' house since they lived in the countryside. It's peaceful out here. I wouldn't even mind moving some place like this one day. But of course I can't move now because it would waste too much gas riding back and forth to the city.
I pulled into their driveway slowly and my heart raced. "Here goes nothing."
I walked to the door and rang the doorbell. It took a couple of seconds before I saw my mom's beautiful face.
"Kibum!" She pulled me into a hug.
"Hey, umma."
She pulled away and closed the front door. "It's been too long. You don't even call us everyday anymore."
"I'm a busy man nowadays."
We walked to the living room and sat down. "How are the children?"
"They're fine. They're at school now."
"That's good....what about.... Jonghyun?"
It went quiet at the sound of his name. "Um....well, he..."
"Kibum!" That's the first time I can say I'm happy to hear my dad's voice.
I stood up. "Hey, appa."
"Well, don't just stand there. Aren't you going to give me a hug?"
"Um...sure." I gave him an awkward hug before he sat on the couch with us next to my mom.
"What brings you over here?"
"Well, I just want to talk about a couple of things with you two. You especially, appa. First, I met a guy-"
I was cut off by my mom's gasp. "Really?! This is great! I knew you'd take my advice sooner or later! How is he? Is he cute?"
My mom seemed to be the only one excited, as expected. My dad didn't show much of an expression. "Appa?" I got his attention. "What do you think.....about me dating?"
He huffed. "I don't like it. Wasn't that nut job of an ex enough? What's so wrong about you being single for the rest of your life?"
"Appa, I've been single for the past two years. Of course, I was happy to have more time to my children, but I'm lonely. I want to be loved like how you and umma love each other."
"And how the hell are we supposed to know that this guy won't turn out like Jonghyun? Huh?!" I could see he was getting angry.
And so was I. "First of all, don't talk to me like I'm that scared little 17 year old again, because I'm not! I'm a 26 year old man!"
"You're raising your voice at me?!"
"You see?! This is why I can never talk to you. This is the reason why I haven't been here in God knows how long unless it involved the boys. You don't respect me, appa. You don't see me as an independent man. You still see me as that scared little boy that you can run over, and I'm sick of it!"
"Maybe if you wasn't such a rebellious teen, we wouldn't be in this situation! You're the one who decided to have without our consent. You're the one who decided to sneak off with him. You're the one-"
I hopped off the couch. "THAT WAS 10 ING YEARS AGO!" All went silent as they listened to me. "Are you ever going to move on?! I'm sick of brewing over something that happened so long ago. I love you, appa. I really do, but sometimes the way you treat me is so wrong." I got choked up. "I know I disobeyed you and I've apologized for that. But you did nothing, but make me feel like a bastard's child. It's not fair, appa!" I broke down into sobs as I covered my face with my hands.
I heard shuffling and felt a pair of strong arms engulf me into a hug. I knew it was my dad, but I couldn't get mad because I needed the comfort. I buried my head into his chest as I cried more.
He rubbed my back soothingly. "I'm so sorry, Kibum. I'm sorry for ever making you feel like I don't care about you. I've always cared about you. Even when I sent you away, all I thought about was you."
"You hurt me so much," I struggled to say throughout my sobs. "I can never forget the hurtful words you said to me, appa."
He pulled me back so I can look at him. I was surprised to see tears in his eyes as well. "I know I messed up, Kibum. I wasn't as good of a father as I should've been. I was too strict and that ended up making you rebel. I realize that now. Everything I said to you before, I didn't mean it. I guess I was really the scared one. I didn't want you to have the life me and your mom had since we had you young."
I sniffed. "But if you knew I would struggle like you and mom did, why did you kick me out."
"Because I was frustrated, Kibum. I tried to work with you after the first pregnancy, because I knew how it felt. But after the second pregnancy, I thought everything was a joke, like you didn't take us seriously."
"But you disowned me, appa. That's the worst thing you could ever say to a child."
He sighed. "Honestly, I have no explanation for that. I just want you to know that I deeply regret everything and I want us to be back on the same page again. I want you to be my little boy again. I know it's mostly my fault why our relationship is strained, but all I'm asking for is for us to try. Can we do that?"
I smiled happily as happy tears ran down my cheeks, "That's all I ever wanted, appa. I love you."
"I love you too." He hugged me tighter.
I heard my mom's tears from the side. "This is so beautiful."
"So about that boy," my dad said, "who is he?"
I smiled shyly as we went back to sit on the couch. "His name's Minho. He plays-"
"Wait... Minho? Choi Minho?" I nodded. "The professional soccer player Choi Minho?!"
"Yeah, appa. How did you know?"
"Did you forget your old man is into soccer? That's something that me and your boys have in common. You're dating him?" My dad seemed amazed.
"Yep. We just met, but we really like each other."
My mom was overjoyed. "He's a nice pick, Kibum. A man who's financially stable is always a plus. How is he?"
I blushed. "Oh, God. Are we really talking about my love life? Hmm, he's really nice and understanding. I told him about me having kids, and he didn't even see a problem in that."
My dad was surprised. "Really? Does he know about Jonghyun."
I sighed. "Yes he does. He said he doesn't care."
"I love him already," said my dad. "When will we meet him?"
"Appa, don't you think it's too soon. He didn't even meet my kids yet."
"Well maybe it's time. Y'know, back in my days, people got married and met the family on the first to three dates."
I chucked. "Appa, I don't think I'll be getting married anytime soon. And I still can't help, but to think meeting each other is too early."
"Well, what about Jongin's birthday? It's a couple of weeks from now. We can all meet him then."
"Um, appa you're forgetting one thing. Jonghyun's going to be there."
"Oh, right."
My mom interjected. "How about this? You can introduce Minho to us privately. He can still come to the party, but Jonghyun doesn't have to know who he is. He can just think he's a family friend."
"But umma, Minho's kind of famous for being on the soccer team. You don't think it'll be weird that he shows up at my son's birthday party out of nowhere?"
"We can only have hope, Kibum."
I sighed. "I guess you're right. I'll call him later to ask him if he'd like to come." I checked the time. "Well, it's about time for me to go pick up the boys from school."
We all stood up simultaneously. They walked me to the door and gave me hugs as we said our final goodbyes.
"It was nice seeing you," said my mom. "I love you, honey."
"I love you too, umma."
My dad came around and gave me an everlasting hug. "I'm glad we're working out things now."
"I'm glad too, appa"
"Now, don't be a stranger. I want to start seeing you over here more."
"You can come over my house too."
He chuckled. "I guess that's right. I love you, son."
"I love you too, appa."
I waved goodbye to them as I got in the car. I felt somewhat lighter after coming over. I know things won't fix with me and my dad overnight, but it's a start.
And all we need is a fresh start.
Another update! These ideas are just overflowing. Thanks for the support. Please leave a comment! ^.~
Key's Dad
Key's Mom
Comments