Every time she returns to her childhood home she expects something to have changed but nothing is ever any different. Her framed certificate for winning the seventh grade taekwondo tournament still hangs on the wall next to the stairs so everybody can see it when they walk upstairs. Her framed diploma from Yonsei University still rests side by side Sunmi's diploma from Korea University on the wall outside their parent's bedroom so they can receive a sense of pride whenever they see it.

The washing machine in their laundry room which has been steadily breaking since Bomi moved out is still there, her mom refusing to buy another one until the one she has actually stops working. Even though it always leaks and leaves a puddle of water on the ground whenever she does the laundry, Sunghee maintains it washes their clothes and that's all it needs to do. The water can be easily mopped up.

That way of thinking has always been her mother's mentality. She prefers to disguise the problem rather than find a permanent solution.

One thing has changed in her childhood home however; their fridge no longer contained her and Sunmi's school reports, it now contained pictures drawn by Jinsol for her grandparents alongside fridge magnets that Sunmi had arranged earlier into ual words before her mom scolded her and she dismantled the words, forming words such as hi and love in their place.

She throws her bag on top of her unmade bed before taking a seat on her desk chair and glancing around her old bedroom.

The room she grew up in.

In a swift minute, all her old memories come flooding back and they hit her hard enough that if she closes her eyes, she can visualise every memory as if she was actually there re-living it. She can remember the slumber parties she, Hayoung and Eunji used to have on Friday's night where they would share two large pizzas and regret it later.

A quick glance at her double bed causes her to remember the secret rendezvous she had shared with Sohee, her first proper girlfriend, whilst her parents thought she was studying. Sure she'd dated several girls throughout high school but Sohee was the first girl she had actually labelled as her girlfriend. One look at her pillows and she can remember every single time she had cried into it over Sohee.

She and her parents had practically stripped her room bare of personal belongings when she moved out yet the memories are still fresh and will never be erased.

"Bomi, dinner's nearly ready!"

At the sound of her mother's voice she shrugs off the memories before leaving her bedroom and heading back downstairs to their amazingly decorated living room.

Her parents certainly did push the boat out every year for Christmas, even more so now they have a granddaughter and Bomi had been surprised at the level of decorations this year, she hadn't thought it was possible for them to become more festive.

Evidently she had been wrong.

Their dining table was already laid in preparation for the upcoming meal and four bottles of wine lay on one kitchen counter. That's no surprise, if she can say one thing about her mother it's that she enjoys a drink, especially around the holidays.

Considering her father's favourite tipple is beer and Sunmi doesn't drink, the four bottles will be shared between Bomi, her mother and Taemin, Sunmi's husband.

She sends a small wave in Sunmi and Taemin's direction before ruffling Jinsol's hair. The smaller brunette raises her head away from the doll she has in her hands and grins widely at her aunt. "Merry Christmas Auntie Bomi."

"Merry Christmas little one."

"Do you want to see what Santa brought me?"

Bomi bobs her head as Jinsol rushes towards the tree and grabs several of her unwrapped presents. Bomi stands still as Jinsol deposits presents in front of her before grabbing more.

"Wow, Santa's been generous this year."

The girl beams at her aunt's approval. "Did Santa bring you a girlfriend?"

Bomi turns around to look at her mother but Sunghee is too busy serving to hear this conversation. "Not this year JinJin, maybe next year," Bomi tells her and it seems to settle Jinsol's curiosity because she runs over to her dad, displaying her presents to him once more.

The blonde woman politely pecks her mother and father on the cheek, receiving a grunt in response from her dad and a gentle 'hello darling' from her mother before picking up one bottle of white wine and returning to the dining table to pour three glasses.

She's just finishing pouring the final glass of wine when her mother shouts from the kitchen.

"Dinner's ready!"

"I found him," Jinsol exclaims as she points to Waldo in the book. "You're not very good at this game Auntie Bomi."

Bomi laughs at her niece before looking to where Jinsol is pointing. "You're just too quick for me."

"Want to play again?"

"Why don't you go play with your mom for a bit so I can talk to Bomi, dear." Sunghee suggests as she appears behind them, a glass of wine in her hand.

Jinsol bobs her head and closes the book. "Can we play again tomorrow Auntie Bomi?"

"Sure thing JinJin, I need to even out the scores."

The small brunette beams before holding the book against her and running towards her parents who were engaging in polite conversation with Seunghyun.

Her mom hands her the glass of wine in her hand before taking a seat at the dining table beside Bomi. "What did you think of dinner?"

Bomi puts the glass of wine back on the table. "It was great; you've always been an amazing cook."

Sunghee revels in the praise momentarily before tucking an out of place hair back into her bun. "You know the other day I was in line at the bank and I bumped into Hyorin."

"Hyorin?"

"Do Hyorin, you know, Kyungsoo's mom," Sunghee explains in more detail and Bomi nods in understanding. "She was telling me that Kyungsoo is directing a production of The Band's Visit in the Seoul Center."

Bomi's head snaps up at the theatre's name. "He is?"

Her mom nods. "Apparently they're bringing it to a Korean stage for the first time and he's holding auditions from now until after the New Year. Supposedly he wants fresh new talent to give the play a twist."

Her and Kyungsoo had been at the same high school together and had sung together in a high school group but that was the only foundation of their friendship. When that disappeared so did their friendship. They were never firm friends anyway and hadn't spoken to each other since leaving high school. Last thing she'd heard, he'd graduated from Seoul University after studying film but that was a couple of years ago.

She plays what her mom has just told her over and over again in her mind. He's directing a play in The Seoul Arts Center, something which Chorong has always dreamed of being in but missed out for some reason on her last opportunity.

Maybe she could fall back on their time together in high school to convince him to give Chorong an audition.

Sunghee waves her hand in the air. "I almost forgot the point of my story. Once she'd finished singing his praises, she told me he recently got married to a girl he met at university."

"That's great."

"And Hayoung's engaged plus Eunji's dating somebody."

"Where are you going with this, mom?"

Sunghee sighs lightly. "Is it too much for me to want my youngest daughter to have a stable relationship rather than an unhealthy addiction to sleeping with random women you're never going to see again?"

"It's not an addiction."

"Okay, it's not an addiction," Sunghee concedes before frowning. "Although I do have a bone to pick with you about your other addiction," she tells her daughter sternly. "I thought I told you not to smoke."

"I don't," Bomi lies quickly because even though she's 24, she still hates disappointing her mom.

"I could smell it on you when you came in."

"I'll try to stop."

Sunghee gives her a soft smile. "Well now we've sorted that, what about a relationship?"

Bomi pinches the bridge of her nose lightly before exhaling. "There is somebody I like."

Sunghee claps her hands like an excited seal and Bomi quickly scans the room to see whether her overdramatic response to Bomi's confession has peaked anybody's interests. Fortunately Sunmi, Taemin and Jinsol are still engaged in Where's Waldo and her father must have gone to his study.

"Well, I think I like her anyway."

"Who is it?"

"That doesn't matter mom," Bomi says. "You don't know her."

Sunghee seems to let the matter of a name drop but the wide smile on her face tells her the conversation is far from over. "What do you mean you think you like her? You either do or you don't."

"We slept together," Bomi starts. Surprisingly she and her mother have always been able to talk about and relationships without either one feeling awkward. Her mom had actually given her useful advice in the past so maybe this time she'll continue that trend.

"But she's with somebody else." The gasp her mom emits is expected but the painful clip around the back of her ear is not. "Mom, what the hell?!"

"What have I told you about chasing unavailable girls?" Sunghee states lowly. "You shouldn't interfere with other people's relationships, I've told you time and time again to turn your attention to single women."

"I can't help it," Bomi defends weakly, rubbing the back of her ear, her face scrunched up. "Besides, I didn't know she was in a relationship when I slept with her."

That seems to calm her mother down slightly. "But now you do, it doesn't deter you does it?"

"Actually for once, yes it does," Bomi states loudly. "I don't want her girlfriend to get hurt but I'm finding it harder and harder to stay away from her."

"Have you done anything with her since finding out she's in a relationship?" Bomi shakes her head meekly. "Do you want to?"

"Yes."

Her mom sighs heavily. "This is why I told you to avoid unavailable women; somebody will always get hurt."

"What should I do?"

"You're my daughter and I want you to be happy," Sunghee states. "If being with this girl is going to make you happy then you have to decide whether you can pass up the chance to be with her."

"Are you advocating cheating?"

Her mom shakes her head vehemently. "Of course not but when you said you liked somebody, your eyes held a sparkle that I haven't seen since Sohee and I want you to find somebody Bomi, more than anything, I want you to have somebody in your life." Sunghee cups her daughter's cheek. "Why don't you tell this girl how you feel and maybe she'll leave her girlfriend for you?"

"I can't do that."

"Why not?"

Bomi remains silent. She can't possibly tell her mom that the girl in question is Chorong, Eunji's girlfriend. Eunji is like a third daughter to Sunghee after spending most of her childhood and adolescence in the Yoon house, Sunghee now thinks of her as one of her own. Her mom despises cheating but if she knew that it was Eunji's heart on the line, she'd despise it even more and Bomi couldn't take it if she disappointed her mom that much.

"I know you my dear," her mom continues, obviously understanding that her daughter isn't going to answer her earlier question. "I knew you would be with Sohee when you said you were studying."

Bomi's eyes widen at that statement.

Sunghee bobs her head. "I know you thought I didn't know but I did. I'm not an idiot Bomi, give me some credit."

"Sorry."

Sunghee shrugs the apology off. "My point is, I know you and I know full well that no matter what I tell you or how much I berate you for sleeping with attached women, you won't listen and you'll continue living your life the way you do but I want you to be careful," she tells her. "This is the first person you've liked since Sohee and I know you're going to pursue her even though you shouldn't. I just –" Her mom pauses momentarily. "I don't want you to get hurt again."

"It might not be me who gets hurt," Bomi mumbles underneath her breath, too quiet for her mother to hear her. The next time she speaks she's louder. "Thanks mom."

"I haven't done anything," Sunghee says with a chuckle. "Everything I've said you're going to ignore." Her mom kisses her on the forehead before standing from the dining table and calling over to Sunmi that they should start a movie. She directs her attention back to Bomi. "Just be careful Bomi, you don't fall often but when you do, you fall hard."

"I've not fallen for anybody."

Sunghee smiles shyly at her. "Not yet maybe but there's no mistaking that sparkle Bomi, it's rather enlightening."

She drums her fingers nervously against the coffee table stealing a glance at her watch every now and again to check the time. Her dad had headed to the shops over an hour ago and since the shop was only down the road, she hadn't expected him to take this long. Worry surfaced in the pit of her stomach about twenty minutes ago and she suspects the newfound worry for her dad's safety is due to the death of her mom.

Ever since then, she worries about her dad more than ever.

The sound of keys in the door has never been more of a welcome noise and she sits back on the couch, trying to feign nonchalance. Her dad would hate it if he knew how worried she had been.

"Hey honey," Jongin states as he kicks the door shut behind him. "Sorry I'm later than I said I would be but you'll never guess who I bumped into." He places the bags of groceries on the kitchen counter.

She stands from the couch and walks over to her dad, helping him unpack the groceries. Her face lights up as she unpacks the ingredients for her dad's famous Chocolate Cookies. He used to make them for her on the beginning of each month and when she moved to Seoul, he continued that tradition by shipping a box to her every first day of a month.

Jongin unpacks some more groceries before turning to look at what had stilled his daughter. His eyes fall to the ingredients in her hands. "They're to make up for the lack of cookies these months, I wanted to apologise for that as well. I didn't keep up the tradition."

Chorong walks into her dad's arms for hug. "You don't need to apologise for anything Dad. Besides, now we can make them together."

Tears well up in Jongin's eyes and he tries to blinks them away, he doesn't want Chorong to see him cry. He's supposed to be strong for her, be there for her and he wants her to give her a good Christmas.

Not one filled with tears.

She takes a step back from him and pretends she doesn't see the tears in his eyes. "You were going to tell me who you bumped into," Chorong reminds him gently, putting the milk and into the fridge.

"It was Namjoo and her parents. They were shopping with a family that I didn't recognise. Their daughter is as stunning as she's tall though. "

"That will be Hayoung and her family," Chorong explains to her father.

Her dad had always held a soft spot for Namjoo. She was one of the few people who never pressured or bullied Chorong in High School, and instead chose to befriend her and compliment her on her drama skills. He'd only met her a couple of times but she was always polite and eager to chat, regardless of the topic of conversation.

"Hayoung," Jongin repeats quietly, throwing the name around in his mind trying to remember why it sounded so familiar. His eyes widen eventually in recognition. "Namjoo's fiancée."

Chorong bobs her head. "Yes."

"I remember the Kim's told me that their daughter had become engaged to somebody she'd met in Seoul and I've been trying to create a mental image of the woman in my brain. I must say, she's very beautiful. I'm really happy Namjoo's found somebody."

"Yeah, they're a really cute couple," Chorong replies, putting the last of the groceries away. "Namjoo told me she wanted to hand you your invitation to the wedding personally so she'll come over at some point during the holidays."

Jongin gushes with delight. "I'm invited to the wedding?"

"Of course you are dad," Chorong explains with a laugh. "Namjoo adores you."

"I guess I'll have to buy a new suit," he states, more to himself than her. "Speaking of relationships, how are you and Eunji?"

The last time he had asked her that question had been a couple of days after Crystal's death, he wanted some form of good news to counteract the bad and Chorong had always talked about her girlfriend with such adoration and happiness so he knew he could count on her.

She had told him they were doing great and she thought she'd found her soul mate.

Less than a week after that, he met the person who had stolen his daughter's heart. Eunji had flown from Seoul so she could be there for Chorong during the funeral and afterwards. Jongin only needed to look at Eunji for a second to see that she adored his little girl and that is all he has ever wanted for Chorong.

He wanted her to have somebody who looked at her like she was the be all and end all. He looked at Chrystal like that every day and Chrystal looked at him the same way.

It had been three days after the funeral when he first noticed that Chorong didn't look at Eunji the same way the auburn-haired woman looked at her. He had chosen to believe that it was simply due to Chorong's grief over Chrystal because it was easier that way. Two weeks after the funeral and Eunji was still by Chorong's side, putting her job and life in Seoul on hold so she could be there for her girlfriend.

Despite Eunji playing the doting, attentive girlfriend, the way Chorong looked at her never changed like Jongin thought it would.

"We're good."

"Just good?" He questions lightly. "Surely when you're in love, you should be better than good."

Chorong runs her fingers through her hand and releases a heavy sigh. "How did you know mom was the one?"

"I didn't," her father tells her. "At least not at first. When I met your mom, I was dating somebody else." Chorong gasps quietly at that confession, she never knew that. "Nothing ever happened whilst I was with my girlfriend at the time but we did become best friends."

"What happened?"

"I realised that your mom was the one I wanted to be with, it's as simple as that."

"How did you realise that?"

Jongin finally takes off his coat and rests it over the back of a chair. "She was the person who called me just to see if I was okay, the person who showed up when I was least expecting it and the person who could make me smile no matter how upset I was."

"I never knew that."

"You never asked," her dad replies lightly. "Are you sure everything's okay between you and Eunji?"

"Everything's fine Dad," Chorong states adamantly.

"You know I just want you to be happy," Jongin tells her as he wraps an arm around her shoulder, pulling her into his body. "No matter whom that is with."

"I'm happy with Eunji, Dad."

She's not sure whether she's trying to convince her dad or herself.

He holds his hands up in surrender. "Okay, I won't ask again." He rolls the sleeves of his shirt up before grabbing two aprons from beside the fridge. "How about we make a start on those cookies?"

She grabs the apron out of her dad's hand and throws it on.

She's never been so eager to bake.

True to his word, her dad stopped asking about Eunji. They had baked the cookies whilst engaging in light conversation, not venturing towards relationships again before watching a movie together. Although the interrogation had stopped for tonight, she knows that tomorrow when Eunji comes to spend the rest of the holidays with her and her father, the questions will soon arise again. Her dad can't help himself, he's always been inquisitive.

She's just about to climb into bed when her cell phone rings. She answers it without even looking at the caller ID, presuming its Eunji to discuss the plans for tomorrow one last time.

"Hey you."

A hoarse chuckle flows through the phone. "Well hello to you too. To what do I owe that cheery greeting?"

She swallows nervously at the sound of Bomi's voice rather than her girlfriend's. "I'm always that cheery when I answer the phone," she lies quickly.

"Even in the morning?"

"Always means at all times so the use of that word would cover the mornings too."

Another laugh fills her ears. "You should hear me in the morning; I sound like a deranged zombie who hasn't bitten anybody in a few days."

She smiles at the response. "That's a very detailed description."

"It's a very accurate description."

She lies down on her bed, moving the phone from her right ear to her left. "What have I done to deserve this phone call?" She asks quietly. "Not that I don't want to talk to you or it's not nice to talk to you, it's just, you've never rang me before so I just wondered why you chose tonight to ring me." Chorong puts her free hand against her forehead and slams her eyes shut. "Sorry, I'm rambling."

"It's okay, I thought it was cute."

Chorong blushes and curses Bomi's ability to make her blush even when they're miles apart.

"I just…after what you told me about your mom, I wanted to see how you were."

Her voice is filled with sincerity and Chorong gushes at the blonde's concern. "I'm as well as I can be, considering the circumstances."

She hears Bomi sneeze into the phone and she gives her a quiet 'bless you'.

"That's good, I would hate for you to be upset."

"How are you?"

"I'm fine thank you," Bomi replies lightly. "How has Christmas been so far?"

The friendliness of this conversation is surprising. Chorong never would have thought Bomi would ring her just to talk and ask how she was but the fact that she took the time to check on her is heart-warming.

"It's a bit hard to celebrate since it's just me and my dad this year but we're making the best out of a bad situation."

"Any spontaneous songs around the dinner table?"

This time Chorong gushes with adoration at the knowledge that Bomi remembered what she had told her when she'd visited Bomi at her apartment. "Not this year."

Silence fills their phone call and Chorong pulls the phone away from her ear to see whether Bomi has hung up on her.

"Is –" Bomi stops mid-sentence and clears before continuing. "Is Eunji there yet?"

"She's flying in tomorrow," Chorong tells her. "Why?"

There's another clear of the throat. "I just didn't want to be interrupting your time with her."

"Well you're not so it's okay." She brushes some hair behind her ear absent-mindedly. "Are you not interrupting your own family time by making this phone call?"

Bomi laughs loudly into the phone and the noise causes Chorong to smile. "It would be hard for me to interrupt family time since I'm in my own apartment," Bomi explains. "Don't get me wrong, I love my family but there is only so much of them I can take."

Chorong glances at her phone briefly to check the date, just in case they had reached midnight during their conversation. "It's December 27th, only two days after Christmas."

"I would have come back yesterday if my dad hadn't insisted we spend the day as a family. We played Clue," Bomi tells Chorong with a playful sigh.

"I love Clue."

"In that case my parents will love you," Bomi replies in all seriousness. "My mom is the worst player ever; she guesses the murderer, weapon and room within like two goes and then complains when she gets it wrong. She does it every time and never learns."

"We'll have to have a game some time."

Bomi smiles into the phone at the suggestion even though Chorong can't see her. "That sounds perfect."

They fall into a comfortable silence and Chorong finds herself fiddling with the hem of her pyjama top. She feels like she did when she first started dating Hwitaek in high school and never wanted their phone calls to end. No matter how hard she tried, he would always bring the conversation to an end rather abruptly yet here she is, staying on the line with Bomi, neither woman speaking but neither hanging up either.

Deciding they can't stay in silence for the rest of the phone call, Chorong speaks. "What are your plans for New Year?"

She hears Bomi sigh into the phone again.

"I have no plans," Bomi tells her. "I was going to head over to Hayoung and Namjoo's and see in the New Year with them but now they're staying in Namjoo's house in Cheongju with their families. My friend from High School, Seunghoon, invited me to Busan to celebrate the New Year with him in style but celebrating with him means drinking copious amounts of alcohol and turning him down every time he tries to sleep with me. As hard as it was, I said no," Bomi says playfully. "My dad's boss is hosting a party so both he and my mom are going there. I'll probably stay in and watch the countdown on television."

Chorong immediately feels saddened at the idea of Bomi being sat in alone on New Year's Eve. "You can't stay in alone."

"It doesn't really bother me. What are you doing?"

Chorong rubs her forehead. "Namjoo's parents are having people over, people from their street, family and friends, that sort of thing. My dad, Eunji and I are going along with Hayoung's family obviously."

"Sounds like fun."

"You know, rather than stay in your apartment alone, you could always come to Cheongju," Chorong suggests in a whisper. "I mean, all your friends are going to be here and Namjoo's promised there's going to be fireworks."

Bomi laughs the suggestion off. "Namjoo is going to explode everything with those fireworks and Hayoung might help her burn the world. I think I'll pass Chorong, I’m just going to meddle in, but thanks for the invite."

She can't help but feel disappointed that Bomi didn't even consider the offer before declining. She thought the blonde might have at least thought about it and got back to her.

"I should let you get some sleep," Bomi says softly. "I didn't mean to turn this phone call into a long conversation, I just wanted to check that you were alright and you were having a good time."

"That's really sweet of you."

Bomi scoffs playfully into the phone. "I have another present for you by the way."

"Is it my stocking?"

Bomi releases a short burst of laughter before collecting herself. "No it's not. I can always buy you that as well."

"Don't you dare," Chorong warns. "I told you not to buy me anything else."

"People always tell me that and I choose to ignore them, I love watching people's faces when they receive presents."

Chorong curls some of her hair around her index finger. "I've bought you something too."

"You shouldn't have done that."

"People always tell me that and I choose to ignore them," Chorong states, repeating Bomi's earlier response.

She hears Bomi chuckle softly. "That's sweet of you. I can't wait to see what it is."

"I can't wait to see what mine is."

A short silence falls over them both once more. "I should probably be going, I need at least eight hours of sleep or I'm useless the next morning."

"I could get twelve hours of sleep and I'd still be useless the next morning."

Chorong chuckles lightly. "Good night Bbom-ah."

"Good night Rong."

She's just about to hang up when she hears Bomi speak again. "Sweet dreams."