When we packed and drove back the next morning, Rena told silly stories of our childhood and described the local scenery to me as if nothing unusual happened. I went along with it, willing to play my part if she was trying to not violate peace. It was a drunk kiss and probably meant nothing to her. It did not faze me that she chose to skip that clip of the night, but I knew secretly, I did expect her to have some sort of subtle response, at least.

      “Jae-ah, you look fantastic.” My mother remarked as I carried our backpacks out of the van.

      I raised an eyebrow at the comment.

      “Really. Back in Korea, you would look either exhausted or… ” my mother trailed off, choosing her words cautiously, “Or I have a hard time recognizing you because you are always changing hairstyles.”

      I rolled my eyes. “Mom...”

      “And you seem happier, too.” She said quietly, “I haven’t seen you with genuine happiness since—”

      “Mom.” I knew the mention of the band was coming and crudely cut her off. I didn’t want to be brought back to my stark reality—not when I was just loosening up. I sidestepped her and walked into the house.

 

      Rena made grilled salmon with a creamy garlic sauce and baked potatoes the next night. When she placed the beautiful plate in front of me, I laughed and that she had fully lost her Korean identity. Rena agreed and disagreed at the same time. To break the bickering, Aunt jumped to her daughter’s defense and said that Rena had mastered the family recipe for kimchi.  

      “Will you make it as good as Aunt Sung used to?”

      She forked a piece of fish and half-smirked. “You’ll have to stay long enough to find out.”

      There was so much more to learn about Rena, and that was undoubtedly an obvious invitation. For the rest of the dinner, I scripted various excuses in my mind for Yoochun and Junsu to delay JYJ activities.

      Rena’s phone buzzed restlessly on the dinner table several times and she took no notice. When it vibrated for the fourth time, I tried to take it and tell her to answer it already. But she grabbed it before me and instantly shut it off without even glancing at the screen.

      “Who was it?” I demanded.

      “Work.” She said breezily and threw me a conspiratorial grin. “We made a deal, didn’t we?”

      I nodded in return, but the uneasy in her usually serene eyes told me there was a secret.  

      We were left alone to clean the dishes again as our mothers sat down in the living room with tea and talked in rapid-fire Korean about family matters. We were completely alone again. Standing next to her, I realized how small Rena really was. Funny how someone could be so small and so unpredictable.

      Staring at her side profile, I was instantaneously taken back to our camping trip a few nights before. My heart skipped a few beats at the memory and I wasn’t sure why it did. Perhaps in the back of my mind, I’d been thinking about that moment for the past few days, but was too distracted and soaked in strange happiness to figure out why.

      A glob of foam suddenly landed on my face, and I realized that I’d been zoning out for a while. As I scrambled to wipe the soap off my face, I saw Rena beaming at me. “You’ve got to stop giving me that robot look.”

      I scowled at her and threw a handful of dish soap bubbles at her face. She dodged my throw and instead wet my shirt with another slab of foam. The kitchen was a bubbly mess, with a flurry of foam dancing across the tiled floor. When we were both drenched with sticky soap water and choking from laughter, Rena suddenly quieted and grabbed my jaw. Without a second of pause, she kissed me hard on the lips. It was short and quick, but her lips were scalding against mine.  

      When she pulled back, her eyes were glittering and her cheeks were pink, “I’ve wanted do that ten years ago, and you beat me to it.”

      My eyes widened. Her words were hard to believe, but I didn’t doubt her for a single fraction of a second. I didn’t falter to respond and pulled her into the nearest room and left the mess where it was.

 

      The disaster in the kitchen was gone when we emerged from the guest room. Aunt Sung had already wiped the counters and was on the phone whispering to someone on the other end, chuckling softly.

      Indistinctively, I caught clips of the conversation, including “I won’t tell her”, “come as soon as possible” etcetera. I glanced at Rena, her hair slightly tousled and the heat vivid under her translucent skin, wondering if she was getting a surprise soon.

      “Is there something you should tell me?” I nudged her.

      Rena only frowned and marched up to Aunt Sung. “Mom, do we have visitors?”

      “Yes,” Aunt Sung answered smoothly. “I’ve called a few friends to come over for dinner tomorrow,” she looked over at me politely, “I hope you won’t mind, Jaejoong. It would be a bit crowded.”

      I shook my head, but Rena seemed unconvinced. “Which friends?”

      “Oh, just some of my co-workers.”

      She observed Aunt Sung for a moment and stepped out to the patio. I pursued her into the cool night air and stood beside her. “That was a bit dramatic of you,” I noted.

      She gave me a wry smile. “My mom can be very unpredictable sometimes.”

      I laughed. “I’d say it’s an inherited trait.”

      “What, you think I’m unpredictable?”

      “You still owe me a lot of answers.”

      “Answers for what?” She retorted innocently, and I ruffled her hair with a light chuckle. She laughed along for a minute, then locked her arm around mine. “Just stick around a bit longer...but not for too long.”

      I tried to break from her grasp and demand her for the meaning of it. But she kissed me again, erasing all my questions before they were even articulate.

 

      The overcast that had loomed Vancouver finally dispersed the next morning, leaving a dome of transparent turquoise sky hovering over the city. It was the perfect morning for brunch with buttered croissants and earl grey tea that Aunt Sung had set out on the patio.

      For the entire morning, Aunt Sung seemed to have a shifty aura around her, and even my mother noticed the unusual giddiness in each step she took. Rena, on the other hand, seemed distracted—perhaps by her mother’s strange behaviors. She didn’t speak much until I diverted her attention to our plans for the days and questions about Vancouver.

      “You wouldn’t want to stay here for too long, because you’ll grow to hate it. ” Rena informed me as she sipped on her tea. There was a grave undertone to the light remark. “The city only gets sun about one-third of the year; you wouldn’t be able to stand it.”

      “At least it’s better than always being trapped in conferences and meetings,” I replied bitterly.

      She said nothing more and examined her mother’s expressions without a word. When Aunt Sung finished the last bite of her croissant and began to set down a tea set, Rena stood up. “Mom, what is going on?”

      “I told you, we are having a guest today.”

      “A guest?” Rena asked suspiciously, “I thought you invited your friends. Not a friend.”

      Aunt Sung stood up and disappeared into the kitchen, her expressions concealed. “Did I?”

      Rena sighed exasperatedly and slumped into her seat. She glared at me angrily when she found that I was staring at her with an amused expression. “What?”

      “It’s just that, you seem jumpier than your mother.” I pointed.

      She gave me a sharp glare and was about to respond when the patio door opened again. This time, Aunt Sung wasn’t alone. I felt the smile fading from my face as I caught the first glimpse of the mystery guest.

      “Surprise!” Aunt Sung exclaimed emphatically, beaming at both Rena and I with flushed cheeks.

      “You kids almost dragged the answer out of me and ruined it,” she glanced over, “then Yunho’s visit wouldn’t be a surprise!”

      From my peripheral vision, I saw Rena’s lips blanching and her dark eyes on me.

      “Jaejoong?” Yunho gaped at me, his eyes familiar and foreign all at the same time. We hadn’t crossed paths for a year. Just as I had changed, so did he: he was thinner, his face more angular and the light in his eyes dulled.

      “Rena-ah, your boyfriend flies all the way from Korea as a surprise for your birthday, and you don’t say anything?”

      Boyfriend.

      For a moment, I saw nothing. Then the intense heat came, as if I had been tossed into the fire. My heart batted erratically against my chest as I whipped my head around to see Rena’s aghast and sorry expressions. I shot out of my chair, making an ear-piercing screech against the wooden floor. “This is what you’ve been hiding?”

      opened and closed.

      “Damn it.” I growled under my breath, ignoring Aunt Sung’s appalled expressions as I stormed out into the backyard. Kicking the flimsy wooden door open, I broke through the front yard and out onto the driveway. From behind me came scattered footsteps and I immediately broke into a run.

      I knew it was Yunho, and I didn’t want him to see me like this.