Eunji’s heart pained, though she didn’t know why. They were on their way back, and Sung Gyu had promised her that they would drop her off first before they go on home, and on the way back, all she could think of was just how lonely she felt. Eunji was lonely, it hadn’t been long since she came into the realization that she was. It wasn’t something that she could help with either. She had tried going out with people, but for the selective person she was, none of it actually worked out for her. She was convinced, in the end that nobody will want to marry her at the end of it all, and she would spend the rest of her life, taking care of other people’s kids.

Sung Jae was sleeping soundly in her arms, as though he was meant to be there. After Sung Gyu was done making out with Hwayoung right in Eunji’s eyes, he had bid her good bye and finally helped her into the car, only with a brief apology. He’d been driving quietly for a while now, the only sound in the car being the decreased music coming from the stereo set. Eunji looked out the window, watching the streetlights passing by and unconsciously thought of the feel of his lips on her own from last Christmas, which was something which had imprinted in her heart. She’d never forget that night, somehow because she was greeted by the glory of his kiss.

Through and through, Eunji slowly fell asleep in the car. In the tranquil quietness inside, Sung Gyu’s mind wandered about to the most unexpected places. More than he thought of Hwayoung, he seemed to be thinking about Eunji. He was wondering why she seemed so unsettled before, why she decided to suddenly disappear off the sight. Sung Gyu had already taken notice of Eunji’s tendency of strange behavior but it was the first time he was seeing her that way.

When the car came down to a red light, Sung Gyu stopped and turned around to check on the sleeping pair, and unconsciously, he smiled. Eunji’s pale, bony hands were tightly grasping onto Sung Jae who was sleeping on her lap, his head against her chest as though she was holding onto her life. Her head was placed against the door, and as she breathed, Sung Jae’s head moved in sync. He watched them for a moment longer and sighed. It was somewhat strange but refreshing, how peaceful Eunji seemed in her sleep. She seemed like an entirely different person now, in her sleep. But Sung Gyu decided that Eunji, awake, was whom he liked the most.

*

The next day, on the evening, Sung Gyu was preparing himself to go out on a date. He had successfully lured Eunji into babysitting for the night with the promise of taking her and Sung jae out for dinner to this posh new restaurant which opened up at the plaza a few days ago, and the two were in the living room, watching a drama and devouring on a bag of chips with cheese.

Sung Gyu took one last look at the reflection of himself, and let out a sigh. He had been having a nagging feeling about something the whole day after he received this strange text over the phone the other night after he got home. It was from an unknown number, and the text merely said ‘You are still using this number?’ which could be probably from a friend of his whom he hadn’t spoken for a long time. Nonetheless he had been having a bad feeling about it, like gut instinct that he ignored for the time being. He could contact that particular number once he get home after the date. He nodded at himself. He could find out who it was and maybe share a good laugh and memories of his college days with an old friend he hadn’t spoken for a while. It couldn’t be anything bad.

He turned to step out of his room when he suddenly remembered that he was forgetting something. Subconsciously his hand moved to the knot of his tie and he stepped towards the mirror once more. He pushed back the knot and tugged at the collar again. And he smiled. For some reason, he just did. Eunji’s words were echoing in his mind. She seemed to have come back to her spirits, which was basically bickering with everyone possible which included him and poor Sung Jae, which meant she was pretty much back to herself. What happened previously was still a mystery to him. Eunji herself was a mystery. Much like Babylonian Hanging gardens and the hidden city of Alexandria. One had to dig deep to find out about her. But once you do, or even try to, the soil would begin to fall over you and you escape for your dear life. Eunji was like that to him. A mystery.

After one final touch to the tie, he pulled back the sleeve of his coat and assessed the time. It was still a little early. But early was good. SO he made his way towards the door, past the living room, then did a double take and came back to the living room in reverse. Then asked; “What the hell are you doing?”

“Money to the swear jar Appa” Sung Jae commented from where he sat, which was the head rest of the sofa set, his legs on the either sides. “We’re playing pirate ship”

“In the living room?”

“Yup” Eunji appeared from under a blanket, which she had tied to the lamp, and the lamp was crooked.

Sung Gyu sighed and almost messed up his hair do. He was getting ready for a date, and his living room turned into a pirate land was the last thing he wanted on his plate right now.

“Nope” Sung Gyu made his way over the cushions and blankets thrown about, put his hands around Sung Jae and pulled him off the couch. “Keep off the sofas, keep off the blankets. Basically keep off of everything!” He sighed. “Please be as humane as possible while I’m away. I am tired of getting things cleaned and repaired”

Eunji rolled her eyes and rolled over in her blanket hut. “La la la la la! Is anyone talking? Is anyone talking?”

Sung Jae, who caught the threads of the game giggled and got under the blanket himself.

“Sung Jae! Jae-ah!” Sung Gyu whined, flaying his hands about. “Can’t anyone listen to me? Miss Jung!”

“La la la!” Eunji mused again, rolling about, and Sung Jae was laughing like there’s no tomorrow. Sung Gyu opened his mouth to yell at them again, but all of a sudden, he couldn’t. All of a sudden, he felt like he was too far away from them, the two of them. Eunji and Sung Jae, still so young and vibrant, laughing to their heart’s content, so beautiful, and them ruining their living room didn’t even matter anymore. What mattered was Sung Jae’s happiness. With Eunji, Sung Jae was laughing. With Eunji, Sung jae was happy.

And this very thought made him smile.

*

“And he simply ignored me and ran off to Eunji’s bloody blanket hut!” Sung Gyu said, laughing and recalling that evening’s incident with Hwayoung. “One of a kind, she is, that baby sitter”

Hwayoung laughed softly, her eyes glimmering with pleasure, and she kept a hand on Sung Gyu’s, which was resting on a side. “That’s because her boss is one in a million”

“Really?” Sung Gyu smiled and gently grasped onto her hand, soft and warm against the cold one of his. Then he just stared at her, thinking, in a daze perhaps. He was blinded, and it was all because of her and her radiant smile.

“Really…” Hwayoung said in the end. Then she placed the spoons and forks in order again, slowly as she did. After a while, she said. “Enough about your Sung Jae and the baby sitter” She said it so casually that Sung Gyu thought the annoyance which edged her voice was a mistake. He stiffened nonetheless, but Hwayoung slowly kneaded his hand, and he felt the sparks again. “Let’s talk about us…” Hwayoung said.

They were out on a date, this time on a dinner cruise around the Han River. Sung gyu had booked it earlier on that day, and thought a cold comforting night around the river was the ideal date. It was indeed so. The wind was chilling and cold, but the warm ambiance on the cruise ship was complementing perfectly well with it. The streetlights coming from the city casted ripples on the tranquil waters, and the stars above, glimmering vigorously was almost a match to the shine of the city itself. There was a soothing music being played, couples dancing around with champagne flutes in hand. It was like a dream for him, to be out on a date with a perfect girl. He hadn’t done so ever in his life.

“Would you like to dance?” Sung Gyu asked Hwayoung, after they were done with their dinner. She was engrossed in her phone at that moment, which irked him a weeny bit. She nodded absentmindedly and looked up. “Yeah, okay!”

Sung Gyu smiled, stood up and walked his way around the table towards her. She stood up as well, at which point Sung Gyu took her hand and lightly kissed her on the back of her palm. Hwayoung did a small courtesy, and so they began to dance under the moonlight.

“Have you ever done this before?” Sung Gyu asked quietly, his cold hands enjoying the warmth as they remained on Hwayoung’s waist. “Dancing like this?”

Hwayoung seemed to mull it over, her eyes heavenwards and biting her lip. The truth was though, the question was supposed to be a pic up line. Hwayoung wasn’t supposed to think it through. All he expected for her to do was blushing, and telling him that she had never felt the way she was feeling now, that she felt special, that she felt loved, and that the sparks flying between them was the most important thing that had-,

“A few times, I guess?” Hwayoung mumbled finally. “If you count the high school balls and the prom dance…”

“High school balls and the prom dance?” Sung gyu said incredulously. “How come you had those?”

“Oh” Hwayoung rolled her eyes as though he was supposed to know all these from the beginning. “I went to school in the states actually”

“Oh…” Sung Gyu smiled, although he felt slightly upset by the fact that she never actually told him that although he had practically shared more than half of his life-long tales with her. But then he decided to overlook it. He just met her, and he had plenty of time to spend together and know each other. But Hwayoung was different. The more he learned about her, the more the distance between them became. It did quite irk him, what he felt. “I didn’t know…”

“Everyone pretty much guesses it” Hwayoung went on, without taking much note of Sung Gyu’s discomfited expression. “You know, my accent…”

Her accent. Was there a difference in her accent? There really wasn’t one. She sounded just the same as any other Korean woman did. But she admitted there was a difference in her accent. A difference he couldn’t guess. He couldn’t notice. He couldn’t.

“Ah, well…there is a difference now that you said so.” Sung Gyu said with a smile. “I’m sorry I couldn’t notice”

“It’s just fine” Hwayoung waved off, shaking her head. They were quietly slow dancing for a moment then, her hands around his neck and his, on her waist. This moment, Sung Gyu too to notice all the slightest fine details about her. How her eyes seemed deep and distant, like she was constantly lost in her thoughts, that fine line of her lips, the perfectly carved bridge of her nose, the soft pink dust on her cheeks and the parting of her hair, how it effortlessly fell above her gorgeous doe eyes. Everything about her was beautiful, but it all suddenly seemed so far away from him, like he was watching a work of art within an unclear distance, like it was only a blur image her that had imprinted on his heart. The girl he knew, suddenly, wasn’t her. The girl he knew was only the girl he knew.

All of a sudden then, the boat dodged, and angled to a side that Sung Gyu quickly moved and grasped onto his dancing partner. The hoo-ha continued until everyone settled down, but not the two of them. Sung Gyu tried his best to find the real her deep in the depths of her eyes, and she, staring back at him, seemed dazed, like she was in a dream. Sung Gyu remained the same, grasping onto her, and it was her who moved first, dragging him down with the length of his tie into a long, blissful kiss.

*

Eunji was just laying the take out on the newspapers which she had laid down on the ground in the blanket hut when Sung Gyu happened to call up on her phone. Sung Jae and she had played rock paper and scissor to choose between Pizza and chicken, and chicken had won, which came in just a few minutes ago. Sung Jae sat smugly in a corner, watching the baby sitter handily worked herself around since he had won this round. Eunji threw an annoyed scowl at the kid and crawled out of the blanket house, her phone in her hands.

“Boss” She said, without much emotions. She was tired of feeling upset about his stupid old boss being taken over while the cool charming herself was still flying solo, so she decided to give up altogether and go by her days. It was hard at first, but the more she thought of it, the more ridiculous it seemed, the stupider her boss became in her eyes until it all turned into a big fat joke. She didn’t care about it no matter whomever Sung gyu went out with. He might as well date an alligator for all she cared, because she couldn’t and didn’t give a damn.

“Eunji” her boss said, almost in a hurry. “Eunji listen. Can you and Jae go out for a little while? It won’t take long I promise”

“What?” Eunji scoffed loudly and kicked a sofa cushion on the floor. “Is there a terrorist threat or something?”

“Just-just don’t ask questions” Sung Gyu stammered. “The new coffee shop at the plaza? I heard they have nice parfaits and freak shakes”

“Parfaits and Freak shakes you say?” Eunji’s eyes brightened. “What a lame excuse really. I don’t even like parfaits. What’s the rush?”

Sung Gyu sighed on the other end, and Eunji waited for his response, biting her lip. She didn’t know what to feel about it. Of course she knew what the rush was, of course she knew where this wole thing went to. But Eunji was suddenly in a state of denial. Her boss wasn’t that kind of a person. He was noble and conservative. He would never ask Eunji to take his son away just so he could have in his house. Or would he?

“Boss…” Eunji mumbled when the silence continued. She wasn’t even sure why she suddenly felt upset. Hell, she didn’t even like Sung gyu.

“Eunji just really don’t ask questions and do as I said” Sung Gyu finally responded.

“Can I use the card?” Eunji asked.

“To the hell with it, just do!”

And there was a clatter coming from the other end before the line died. Eunji stared at her phone for a few minutes, stunned by what just happened and wondered aloud if she should put off all the pirate land props and maybe clean Sung Gyu’s bedroom a bit. Then she realized that she was thinking too far, so she called out Sung Jae and trudged off to the living room.

*

All throughout the car ride, Sung Gyu held onto Hwayoung’s hand as though he was afraid she’d let go of him. Her hand was warm in his own, soft and slender, fitting there just perfectly like puzzle pieces. At times he was so sure of her, so certain that after all his round ups, she was the one. It was a time like that, a moment where he thought it was indeed her he deserved, just like his hand was fitting in hers.

“Are we there yet?” She asked as they stopped on a red light. Sung Gyu dared to take a glance at her, her beautiful pristine silhouette awash in street lights, so gorgeous, so breathtaking. Sung Gyu lifted her hand and kissed her. “Just a moment…”

“Just a moment…” She repeated, giving him a dazzling smile. Everything about Hwayoung was beautiful that night. Everything that he could ask for. Perhaps this was the person he’d been waiting for all his life, the person who would ultimately steal his heart and his mind.

Soon, they arrived at the parking lot of the Sung Gyu’s apartment plaza. He hoped Eunji had done as he asked her to, as he parked the car in a secluded corner. And just the two climbed down and clambered into the lift to the condominium, they kissed and held hands, holding onto each other as if it was their dear life. Sung Gyu could hardly take a glance at her without feeling prickles all over himself. He held on, nonetheless, until the bell dinged, until the door parted, until they made their way to the corner condominium; and once they did, Sung Gyu cornered Hwayoung to a side and began to kiss her.

“Is this okay?” He asked her as he reached for the door lock. Eunji had posted a post-it on the door saying that they had gone to the down stair coffee shop, which was a relief.

“It’s okay?” Hwayoung mumbled and reached for Sung Gyu’s jacket lapels. They stood against the wall and made out even more, parting only for a breath. Sung Gyu had his eyes closed, hands in her hair. He was so much into it, so much so that he didn’t even take note of an intruder standing by the doorway. Not until this particular intruder cleared their throat did they pull apart.

When they did, finally, all Sung gyu could do was gape in befuddlement. He hadn’t expected any intrusion that night. In fact, he hadn’t expected her to be the cause of intrusion at all. Sung Gyu wouldn’t admit that he hadn’t exactly expected her to pull the kind of a stunt, just for the sort of person she was. But not tonight, please not tonight-

Nonetheless, there she was, standing in her glory, staring back at him with a smirk.

“Y-Yoora” Sung Gyu ultimately managed to say.

Yoora was standing there, gracing him theatrically with her presence. Sung Gyu was utterly befuddled. All he could do was standing there, stunned in the quietness of the hall, questions and uncertainties floating in the air among them. He couldn’t dare take a single glance at Hwayoung now, he couldn’t dare imagine what she must be thinking by now. Millions of questions to be answered, millions of problems falling between them, and he was ready for all of it.

“Who is she?” Hwayoung whispered, and it was at this point that Sung Gyu finally looked at her and gazed into her curious eyes.

“Yes, who am I, Sung Gyu-Ssi, tell her” Yoora said challengingly, stepping towards them.

“Yoora, don’t do this” Sung Gyu sighed, almost pleadingly.

“Do what?” She gave an innocent smile, as though she was unaware of what she might be stirring just now. “I’m not doing anything”

“Who is she Sung Gyu Oppa?” Hwayoung repeated, and Sung Gyu decided to tell her the truth.

“Yoora is Sung Jae’s mother”

“Mother?” Yoora echoed, stepping away as though she was stung. “But I thought Sung Jae’s mother was dead!”

“Dead?” Yoora said, surprised. “You told her I was dead? Did you tell Sung Jae I was dead too? Goodness!”

“No!” Sung Gyu sighed and shook his head before he turned to Hwayoung. “Did my mother tell you that?”

Hwayoung merely stared at him for a moment, almost tearful and shook her head. “You never told me the truth! And…and why do I think you lied to me?”

“What? No!” Sung Gyu placed both his hands on Hwayoung’s shoulders. “Listen, I was going to tell you properly, and I’m sorry I didn’t clear the misunderstanding any sooner”

“Misunderstanding?” Scoffed Yoora on the other side. “God knows how many girls he had said that lie to”

“Oppa!”

“Yoora!” Sung Gyu turned, deterred. “Stop spewing bloody lies!”

“Lies? You gave me a child and disappeared!”

“No I didn’t!” Sung Gyu clutched his head. “I didn’t ing leave you!, It was you who did?”

“So you’re putting the blame on me now!” Yoora returned. “Good thing I left the child with you. You don’t know how much I suffered because of you! I had depression and almost killed myself because of you!”

“Yoora!”

“You know what?!?” Yelled a third voice, and both Yoora and Sung Gyu turned to Hwayoung’s direction. She had tears in her eyes and Sung Gyu almost hurried over and held her in his arms, but he couldn’t. He was hurt that Hwayoung, without doubting them, was believing all of Yoora’s lies. He was hurt that nobody gave no consideration of him and his child, the victims of their doing. Not his mother, not Yoora, and now not even Hwayoung. He didn’t know whom to trust anymore.

“You know what…?” She repeated and hit Sung Gyu on his chest. “I don’t know what else you are hiding just now. In fact, I don’t think I even know you right now, and I don’t think I’d even want to…” She took a deep breath then, and stepped away. “Whatever we had, It’s over now. I’m sorry we had to part this way. But if you had lied to me, you should have known this would happen…goodbye”

Sung Gyu didn’t even try to stop her. He only stared after her as she turned and left without another word. He didn’t even want to stop her. His mind was muddled up with all sorts of emotions, but none of them led him after her. All he could think about was how unfair everything was. She could have at least heard out his side of the tale, but she didn’t even bother. He wouldn’t even question why Yoora was lying. But his mother? All he could do was take blame for everything and walk away.

“Are you happy now?” Sung Gyu asked Yoora as she victoriously stood on his side. “Are you ing happy now?”

“I told you I will come back to you” Yoora said, raising her brows. “If you don’t want any more mishaps, let me see my child”

“Oh yeah?” Sung Gyu took a step towards her, rage firing in his eyes. “Well listen to me now then. Whatever the you do, I will never let you near my son. Never”

“Okay then” Yoora shrugged. “I expect you will be ready then. I will come onto you, on and on and on and on until you grow tired of me, sick of my doing, until I get to see my child again. I hope I made myself clear to you”

“I’m sick of your sight already” Sung Gyu said and dragged a hand down his face. “Please. Just leave”

Yoora smirked and raised a hand in the air. “Goodbye then” And she was off.

After she was gone, all Sung Gyu could do was stand against the door, his forehed pressed onto it, thinking of all the possibiliries left. So far, he had none, so far, all he had was Sung Jae for comfort, so far, he was practically alone. It was unconsciously that he reached for the post it on the door, nonetheless, and he stared at the messy hand writing blankly, his mind not forming a response. “We’re off for parfaits and ing freak shakes, have fun!” It said, and he kept staring at the words, reading them on and on until he suddenly realized he was hearing her voice in his mind. In fact, he was reading the line in her tone, which was bizarre for him. But he did so nonetheless and pulled out his phone.

“Get me a cappuccino on your way back” He said once the last person he wanted to speak to, picked up the phone.

“Hey! Done having hot already?”

“Yah” He said mildly, exhaustion taking up most of him and he slid down the door to lower himself on to the floor. “Is Jae around?”

“He and I came to the arcade, he’s playing games and stuff”

“I didn’t ask you to take him there!”

“Whatever” Eunji said, mischief underlying in her voice. “He’s already here, what to do?”

“Whatever, just stay there” Sung gyu said, an unconscious smile spreading across his lips. “I’m ing coming over.

*

‘I’m sorry I’m writing this to you now. We had parted ways badly, and I wanted to apologize. I should have asked you back then, hear you out at least, but I was too foolish that I believed her on point. Your mother told me everything, and eventually I felt like . Even worse, I had had an epiphany, my heart changing routes and kept going back to the man whom I left for you, all throughout the time I spent with you. What we had was special nevertheless, as long as it lasted, and I wish you well. Give my love to Sung Jae.
Yours sincerely, Hwayoung’

Sung gyu folded the letter into two and took a deep breath. He was at the wedding boutique on yet another weekend in order to help his mother out with her wedding planning business as he had promised, and that morning Hwayoung’s mother asked to speak to him privately and handed him the letter. Sung Gyu was hesitant at first, vary of what might be written in it, but took it nevertheless and read as he dressed. Afterwards, however, he felt much, much better. A week had passed since their parting, and he wouldn’t say he hadn’t missed her, because he did, Hwayoung was a great girl, but she wasn’t meant for him, he understood as far, and had moved on with his life. His single lifestyle as a father hadn’t bothered him much afterwards, and he wasn’t even thinking of finding love after that particular experience. He had a well-behaved son and a reliable baby sitter. There was nothing more he could ask for, for the time being, and he was happy with how things had turned out to be.

“Ready?” Called his mother from outside the door, and Sung Gyu took another look at his bowtie and quickly tugged it to place out of habit. He smiled at his own reflection. Sung Gyu believed that he was still fine and dandy as a man goes, and he was still not too old to get a second chance at love again. With this thought in mind, he stepped out the stall, waved at the waiting Sung Jae in a suit, and made his way towards the small stage.

He hadn’t expected Hwayoung to model as the bride again, yet he had no idea whom the new model should be. He was not going to screw things up this time however. Whatever the case was, Sung Gyu was going to take things slow and easy.

The curtains of the bridals closet parted, and out stepped the bride, clad in a shiny polyester ball gown, hair fixed gracefully in place and a bouquet in hand. She looked up smiling, and then at the sight of the groom, her smile fell and turned into an annoyed frown.

“You promised he wouldn’t pose as the guy, you promised!” Eunji yelled at the top of her lungs. “I refuse to do this, I yield!”

Sung Gyu stared at Eunji, dressed as a bride in horror. It wasn’t that she wasn’t pretty or anything. In fact, Eunji was very pretty indeed, and he liked how they had done her long dark mane of hair, but Eunji as a bride, the entire context carried horror itself.

He turned to his mother in panic. “Wait. Why is she the bride?” He looked at Eunji. “Why are you the bride?”

“Why are you the bloody groom?” Eunji returned.

“Money to the swear jar” Sung Jae deadpanned.

Sung gyu looked from his mother, to Eunji, and back to his mother, his eyes widened as far as they could go. “Does it mean I have to go out with her?” He asked teasingly and turned back to Eunji. “Does it mean I have to go out with you?”

“No!” Eunji cried, throwing her hands in the air. “I will never, ever, ever go out with you!”

Hello everybody!
I just needed to tell you guys that you all are such a lovely bunch of people, I really love and appreciate all your comments, though I didn't respond to them, just know that I read them on and on when I'm feeling bad about myself.

A note about this chapter: Eunji is  not in love with Gyu, she's attracted maybe, or haven't realised it yet. What she's upset about is her still being single. I hope I wasn't giving the idea wrong.

Lastly. Loads of love to all the silent readers as well as commenting readers. You all are precious. Thank you.

Just remember, everyone of you is a beautiful soul.

Loads of love,
Achini.