Kyungil sat at his workbench staring into his wilting salad, which ended up being all he could make on short notice. He was so use to buying lunch he hadn’t even planned on acting on his words to bring his lunch. However, Yijeong had other plans and he didn’t want to make the trek to any of the food courts.

The bell at the front of the shop rang drawing him, once again, towards the front of the shop. This time there was two people, a familiar male and girl with a slightly similar face. They both had full cheeks, rounded almond eyes and small noses.

“Kyungil!” The boy grinned, “since you came to visit me yesterday I thought I’d return the favor.”

He turned to the girl, “this is my sister.”

“Hi, I’m Raina, 24,” she gave him a little wave.

“Nice to meet you,” Kyungil observed the small girl, easily a head shorter than himself, “I’m Kyungil, 26.”

“Yes, yes, and I’m Yijeong, 18,” the boy pouted at the annoying greeting forced upon meeting someone new, pulling his sister away since he couldn’t do so with Kyungil. The girl giggled, glancing unabashedly between the two of them, “Yiji don’t act like that.”

His frown deepened, “it’s unfair. I wish I was older.”

“I know little one,” she patted his head and swiveled him around to the door, “let’s go have a good lunch, on me.”

She paused at the entrance, holding it open with her foot while Yijeong waited outside, “would you like to come?”

Kyungil gave a thoughtful glance towards his pathetic salad before nodding, “that would be great, as long as I’m not intruding?” Honestly he didn’t care if he was interrupting their time together. This was a chance to talk with Yijeong, not having to worry about the guards. He was taking advantage of the situation and he hated himself a little because of it.

“Of course not,” she shook her head, “we’d both love to have you come along.”

“I’ve heard so much about you,” she whispered out of earshot from Yijeong, her eyes glistening with a mischievous light.

Lunch was more relaxing than normal for Kyungil, not having to constantly clock the guards movements or wonder if they’d picked up too much attention. Yijeong, on the other hand, was fidgeting unhappily and constantly pulling his sister back to her side of the table. He was glad Kyungil had joined them but a different sense of worry wracked his mind.

“Raina,” the young boy pulled at his sister’s arm once again, “you’re practically falling out of your seat.”

“I’m sorry,” she straightened up and pushed her hands down, flattening her dress in an elegant manner, “you’ve just spoken so highly of him. I was excited to meet him. You give such little detail.”

“He refuses to talk,” Yijeon huffed, blowing a stray hair away, “the guards make him nervous.”

“The guards make everyone nervous, dear,” Raina picked at her meal, “he has every right to be worried and I’d be upset if he wasn’t. If you’re both picked up its not only him who will get in trouble.”

Yijeong grumbled and turned his attention to his surroundings in the restaurant. She wasn’t wrong, she was rarely wrong anyway, and he hated being reminded of it.

“We’re not dating,” he hissed as a reminder, not only to himself but Kyungil and his sister as well. Kyungil’s expression fell for a fraction of a second before he composed himself, a smile plastered on his face. Raina didn’t falter, “it doesn’t matter. I will not lose you because you refuse to be an adult about this situation.”

“I like you, Kyungil,” she rested her hand on his wrist, “and I like that you are not risking my baby brother’s future. Until he can understand the risks…”

Kyungil pulled his arm away, raising his hand in response, “don’t continue. Please. We are not going to break any laws, I promise. So don’t even think about it. I will stay away from Yijeong, if that’s what you wanted to ask.”

His heart was heavy, pins slowly pushing past the thick skin, this wasn’t what he wanted. He expected a look of triumph on the younger girl’s face but the only thing he was sadness. “However,” he added “only until he understands the consequences. Then we will resume our lunches.”

“Thank you,” she said, her voice tipped with a heaviness equal to his own, “I wish there was something I could do.”

“What? No!” Yijeong sat stiff in his chair unable to move, the disbelief was apparent on his face, “we…we weren’t doing anything. I just wanted to be near him…”

Kyungil scooted his chair back and stood slowly; all he wanted to do was comfort the boy, instead he turned to Raina and bent down, his mouth even with her ear.

And he whispered.

Satisfied that she understood he stood upright and walked around the table ruffling Yijeong’s hair as he passed, his fingers lingering a little too long on the boy’s neck.

“I’ll give you two a moment,” he paused at the end of the table, “and then I’ll be back.”

Yijeong watched Kyungil disappear to the restaurant bar and plop himself down on one of the stools. Turning to his sister Yijeong gave her the most bewildered look his face could possibly make.

“What is going on?”

The girl wrung her hands and looked back at her food, “I like him.”

“Raina,” he glared at her, “it doesn’t matter if you like him. Why are you being like this?”

“Yiji, you just turned 18. You’re young and you have your whole life in front of you,” she stared into her lap, she wasn’t trying to be being bitter, “I don’t want to see you destroy yourself over a man, no matter how great he may be. You still don’t know anything about him.”

“I am well aware of that, however, ushering me away from him isn’t going to change that. Now is it,” he quipped, pointing his fork angrily at her.

“Once you understand how much danger you put each other in, fully understand, I mean feel it with all your heart…then I will help you figure something out,” she folded her hands over her face and sighed, “because, I want you to be happy. Please, think seriously about this.”

Yijeong swallowed hard, the reality of the situation hitting him. Raina, while down to earth, was rarely so serious. Her normally bubbly expression was ice cold and lined with intent.

“Yes, okay,” he could hardly find air to fill his lungs, “I will…”

Her face softened and she waved Kyungil back over.

“Have we had enough doom and gloom for the day?” The older man grinned, setting a half-empty glass of whiskey down next to his plate.

“We have,” Raina grinned right back at him and reached for the glass, taking a sip before he could say anything, “so, Kyungil, what got you into jewelry?”

Kyungil shrugged, staring at Yijeong from under his bangs, “I like pretty things. I like the idea that I’ve molded something unrefined into a beautiful shining gem.”

“That’s an interesting take.”

“How about you,” Kyungil reached his arm out underneath the table, catching Yijeong’s knee, “what do you do?”

The boy blushed, which didn’t go unnoticed by his sister, she just chose to ignore it, “I’m actually in advertising. It’s hard work, mainly because you have to try and come up with new concepts constantly.”

“Sounds like it,” Kyungil squeezed Yijeong’s knee, he aimed his next question to the latter, “what about the rest of your family?”

“There’s our m-mom,” his voice cracked as Kyungil continued playing with his leg, “uh, dad, Raina’s daughter and Jaehyo.”

“Jaehyo doesn’t count,” she shook her head in amazement, “that’s his best friend, they go back to diaper days.”

“You’re married?” Kyungil passed over the last sentence and glanced at her ring finger.

“No,” a slight blush creeped onto her cheeks. An unmarried mother was a rarity in this world, before marriage was frowned upon but not illegal. Having a child out of wedlock was an atrocity, but not illegal. With the birthrate tumbling near one percent, the government needed all the procreation it could get. So long as it was legal.

“I-I don’t know what to say,” Kyungil pulled his hands back from under the table, “how old is she?”

“She’ll be five in a few months,” Raina’s eyes glistened, “she’ll be in the program soon, I’m excited for her.”

“Do-“ he glanced at Yijeong for a moment, “I hate to say it so bluntly, who is the father? Do you know?”

“I’m not a tramp, Kyungil,” she puffed out her cheeks, “of course I know who her father is.”

Yijeong laughed, “she’s quite a cute little thing.”

“How about you,” she asked, “what about your family?”

“My father is deceased, there was an accident in the mines, where he worked.” His lips twitched into a smile, “I remember when I was little he would bring me all these little rocks and stones he found. They were the highlight of my week.”

The stares from the siblings made him uneasy, “that’s… probably what first got me interested in gems.”

“Like you were asking earlier…” He continued, “what?”

“That’s such a cute memory,” Raina simpered, “you’re a softie aren’t you.”

“What about your mom?”

“She’s ah,” his face contorted, “she’s in hospice.”

“That’s just horrible,” Yijeong reflexively reached out for Kyungil’s hand but stopped himself. Raina finished the motion for him, cupping her hand into his, “I’m sorry to hear that. H-how long?”

“They don’t know,” Kyungil’s heart squeezed; he hated talking about his mother, he especially hated being reminded that she was dying. Every time it was like a knife gutting him from throat to groin. There was nothing he could do to save her, no cure, no pills, no transfusions.

“Well, this has just been a rollercoaster of emotions and lots of information to absorb,” he grinned rigidly.

“Yiji, dear,” Raina pulled out her purse despite Kyungil’s insistence on paying, “why don’t you walk Kyungil back, since you wont be seeing each other for a bit. I’ll see you back at home.”

The pair left the restaurant, keeping at least a foot clear in between them. Yijeong chuckled to himself, “you cant touch me now, can you.”

“Well, I could but then you and I would undoubtedly go to jail,” Kyungil swept down near Yijeong, “we don’t want that, do we?”

“Yes, you’re right. You both are, I know it,” his whole body heaved in heavy disappointment, “I just, I want…I want so much for you and I—“

Yijeong shook his head, “I wish these laws didn’t exist. In a different place and time, would you have chosen me, Kyungil?”

“Don’t answer that,” Yijeong kept talking to himself, bringing his hands up to cover his eyes, “I think some time to reflect is going to be good. One way or another.”

They stopped in front of the jewelry store, Kyungil turning to the younger with a smile meant just for him, “I’ll be here. Waiting for our lunches, because they are the best part of my day. Even if I lose a month from my life due to stress every time we eat together.”

“I’m very fond of you,” Yijeong backed away from the store beaming, “imagine I just gave you a kiss—to keep you company until we see each other again.”