Father. 

Their appa. 

The words seem to register clearly for the children, and they cannot hide the shock on their faces. 

"He's our Appa?" Hee Young almost squealed, but Halmeoni had to clamp their mouths down. 

"Don't be too loud." She warned, before she leaned in closer for a whisper. "But... Yes, he's... He's your appa."

Chung Ae almost dropped the paper bag in his hands. The little picture that he found finally piecing everything together. The man in the picture to the guy on the bus, it was him. It was actually him, and it was as if he was about to jump to the highest heavens from the discovery. 

"So, he was here?" Chung Ae had to ask, and Halmeoni nodded slowly. The kids couldn't help themselves as their mouths gaped wide. 

"You mean we were a few steps away from Appa?!" Hee Young squealed, and it was a miracle that they were the only people by the area when she said that. Halmeoni threw a warning glance at her, and Hee Young clamped her own mouth shut, before looking down at the ground in guilt. 

"You cannot tell your eomma that you knew this, alright?" Halmeoni spoke slowly, pointing at the two. The twins nodded in response. "We cannot afford to have your eomma know this. She'll kill me if she found out. Also, we are not sure that we will get to encounter your appa soon, but rest assured, that we will make it happen, and we will make him and Eomma meet, alright?" 

The twins nodded excitedly, the thought of finally meeting their father slowly coming into a reality. "Alright. Now, I want you to do a favor for me: do not, and I repeat, do NOT, talk about this moment once we step foot on the hospital, alright?"

The twins looked up at their grandmother, the bright smiles on their faces as they replied in sync. "Yes, Halmeoni!" 

____

The Gangnam Fairmount Hospital stood in the very heart of the district, housing patients from different parts of the country and with the most state-of-the-art facilities most medical centers would ask for. The glass windows that extend to the ceiling and the gray pillars standing by the entrance of the hospital show the rushing doctors and nurses, as well as the visitors sitting by the lounge areas visible to the public. The fountain by the entryway bursting into different colors and lights, and in the midst of it, Hee Young looked up to see different visitors and patients looking out their windows to watch the spectacle. Even if she's visited this place multiple times, the fountain show still amazes her, and she's just happy to pass by it for a split second. The three enter the hospital, the receptionist bowed at them with a warm smile.

"Hello Halmeoni! Hello Hee Young-ie, Hello Chung Ae-yah!" Ae Ra chirped. 

"Receptionist-nim!" Chung Ae greeted her, bowing at her and coming up to give her a toothy grin. 

Ae Ra's wide eyes looked at the children fondly. She basically knew them ever since their mother's first year of residency in the hospital, and they could barely speak coherent sentences that time, but to the twins, it's like she's the same woman ever since: her jet black hair kept in a neat ponytail, the baby blue scrub uniform kept under her cream colored cardigan, lips stained in an orange hue, and her pearly whites in full show as she saw them. It was like she wasn't aging at all.

"Have you seen Ji Hyun, Ae Ra-ssi?" Halmeoni asked. "And have you eaten?"

"I saw her enter the elevator just now, probably back to her clinic." She recalled. "And I have, Halmeoni. I just finished my meal. Thank you for asking, though."

"Ah, I see." Halmeoni nodded. "Thank you for your help, Ae Ra-ssi."

"You're welcome, Halmeoni." She nodded at her, before turning to the children. "You're here to visit Eomma, huh?"

"Yes!" The children cheered, holding up the paper bag. Ae Ra laughed, before directing them to the elevator by the North Wing. The three walked in a hurried pace as the elevators were about to close in on them. The twins do the honor of pressing the button, and after a few seconds, the twins run out of the elevator, and towards the familiar hallways, their footsteps echoing through the walls and slapping on the tiled floor. They stop in front of the door, the name plate of their mother plastered in Hangul and Romanized, her title written underneath. 

Nam Ji Hyun, M.D.

Cardiologist.

The twins knock three times slowly, before knocking four times in a staccato rhythm, and it only took a few seconds until they heard a "Come in!" inside the room. The door bursted open as the twins rushed to their eomma, who was already crouching down on the floor to hug them. 

"Oh, my loves." She sighed, kissing the top of their heads. "Eomma missed you two so much." 

"We miss you too, Eomma!" The twins replied in sync as they tried to come up for a kiss, and their mother laughed. 

"Careful now, Eomma still hasn't taken a bath yet, and she just got out of the emergency room. You know what that means?"

"Germs!" They squealed jumping off from their mother. 

"That's right." She chuckled, before looking at Chung Ae. "And what do we have here?" 

Ji Hyun reaches for the paper bag, but Chung Ae had other plans. He ran past her, but Ji Hyun was quicker as she grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back towards him. 

“Not so fast, little man.” She chuckled, before grabbing the paper bag from his grasp, and Chung Ae could only laugh at his mother as she peppered him with kisses on his fluffy cheeks. 

“Eomma!” Hee Young poured at her, and Ji Hyun could only laugh as she beckoned her to come closer, before showering her with kisses as well.

”Goodness,” she spoke. “Why are you two so clingy?”

The two could only giggle as their Eomma gave them one last kiss on their temples, before she sat back down on her seat, and opened the paper bag the three gave her. 

“Awww, thank you!” She cheered. “I needed this.” 

“You’re welcome, Eomma!” The twins replied. 

“Ji Hyun-ah,” Halmeoni started. “Have you been drinking water? Have you had your dinner? Has the emergency room been toxic for you?” 

Ji Hyun could only chuckle in response. “Yes, I have been drinking water a lot, and had dinner. And Eomma, the emergency room is always toxic. But, I’ll be fine.” 

“I hope so.” Halmeoni sighed. “Get some rest when you have the time, alright? It’s best not to overwork yourself.” 

“I will, Eomma. Don’t worry.” She smiled, reaching out to hold her hand. “Thank you for the visit. I really needed it.” 

“Just... Just remember to take care of yourself, Ji Hyun-ah.” 

“I will, Eomma. I’ll be home tomorrow in good shape, don’t worry.” 

Somehow, Halmeoni didn't really think that this image would come to life: her youngest daughter, an actual, successful cardiologist, talking about her patients and her life in the hospital. It took an arduous journey to get here, especially when the twins came along. She remembered clearly when Ji Hyun was torn in giving up her degree and working for her children. She remembered the nights she cried over her subjects and exams while she took care of her children in the middle of the night. It was as if she was already beaten, bruised, and held by the neck by Lady Luck, and she saw everything that her daughter went through. In the end, she ended up coming up as one of the topnotchers in the national licensure exams for health personnels, and she's going strong in her profession for three years. Seasons came and went, and she watched as Ji Hyun grew more confident in her element as a doctor, while being a loving mother to her twins. She knew how being a single mother had its tribulations, especially in the medical field, which is why her family gave her nothing but the much needed support that will keep her going until the very end. Now, as they stood in her mundane clinic, her heart soars on the thought of her being here and living her dream.

Halmeoni nodded, before she went and hugged Ji Hyun, squeezing her tight in her arms. “I love you, my precious doctor.” 

“I love you too, Eomma.” She smiled into her shoulder before they parted, and then, she turned her attention to the kids. 

“You do your best in school tomorrow, okay? Eomma will have a surprise for you when you do well tomorrow.” She spoke, and the twins squeal in delight, before a knock disturbs their peace.

“It’s probably the results I asked before.” Ji Hyun muttered to herself, before she looked at them with a smile. “You come home safe for me, alright? And sleep early. I don’t want you to be late for school, do you understand?”  

The twins nodded, before they come back to her for one last hug. “Eomma loves you a lot. Be safe, alright?” 

“We love you Eomma.” Hee Young muttered as she nuzzled her face into her chest. 

“We’ll be safe, Eomma, no worries. I’ll protect them.” Chung Ae declares. 

“Hey, girls can defend themselves too.” She raised an eyebrow at them.

“I know, but I’ll still protect them, Eomma.” Chung Ae puffed out, causing Ji Hyun to let out a chuckle and a tired sigh. 

“I know you will.” She whispered before kissing both of their cheeks goodnight. “Be good to Halmeoni, alright?” 

“Yes, Eomma.”  The twins yelled before they headed out for the night, leaving their Eomma to handle the rest of the night. 

 _____

With the weekend rolling in, they're now facing the first phase of their plan: how to catch his attention in the least suspicious way possible.

The other thing they have to figure out too is where to actually find him, but since they had the address of his agency, they figured they should start there, as well as search who he is. With a few characters and a tap of a button, as they huddled around Halmeoni's small smartphone, tons of pictures of his face flooded the screen. Halmeoni wondered if a small part of Ji Hyun's reason why she didn't want the children to have smartphones is that they'd find him easily, but they were already here, and they were more determined to find him than anything.

"So he really is an actor?" Hee Young looked back at Halmeoni, in which she responded with a nod. 

"Remember when the woman the other day told us about him having movies and shows?" The twins nodded in response.

"But, how come we've never watched him?" Chung Ae tilted his head at Halmeoni.

"It's already bedtime when his shows come on." She lets out a weak smile at him.

"Can we watch Appa's works some time?" Hee Young perked up.

"We'll see, Hee Young-ie." Halmeoni chuckled lightly, before scrolling further and reading more articles about him. Most of them are about his appearances in events, and even interviews of him about his works, and with reading each one of them, they understood why people like him a lot, and they themselves couldn't help but have some admiration for him, despite not exactly knowing him. 

It wasn't a joke that they wanted to at least give him a little gift once they step foot by his agency, and they did just that. They contacted the agency beforehand with a concise e-mail, and after a day of waiting, they were good to go. With a few strings and beads, the twins tried their best to make some bracelets, in which Halmeoni had to teach them how to braid and tie a few. While they were at it, Halmeoni was busy making her own gift: a thick, brown scarf that was almost abandoned in her crocheting basket with the needles still attached to it. She crocheted it with utmost speed and determination, hoping that she'd get to give her gift as soon as possible. After multiple attempts and a few snack breaks later, the twins have finally created their bracelets, and they decided to make at least a small letter of appreciation to their father. Although, they had to leave out the fact that he was his father, since Halmeoni told them that it might ruin their chances of them meeting him if their letters went through his agency first. So, they kept it short, yet sweet.

Actor-nim! We hope you enjoy the bracelets we made for you. Keep up the good work! We love you!

Somehow, despite them being excited for this, there was still a part of them that felt nervous. They thought of the chances of how well this was gonna work, and how this might fail in their hands. They thought of their father, and what would happen if he found out about their identities. Hee Young thinks about their father welcoming them with open arms, kissing them on the temples and holding onto them tightly. She thinks about whether he smiles at them or not, if he'll ignore them or not. Her stomach twists in knots at the possibility of her father not loving them, and it made her stop her work, before borrowing from her brother the photograph of him. Halmeoni noticed Hee Young's behavior all of a sudden, watching her stare sadly at the photo of their father in her hands. She sets down her scarf by the basket, and beckons Hee Young to come towards her. 

"What's wrong, my love?" She asked as Hee Young held onto the photo tightly, sitting by her side. She was silent for a while, staring at the man in the picture.

"Halmeoni," she started. "Do you think Appa will love us?" 

She swipes her thumb onto her cheek repeatedly. "Of course he will. You're his children. But rest assured, if he doesn't, we will still be a family without him." 

Hee Young bit her lip. "But... But he's my appa. I want him to be my appa."

A tear escaped from her eye, but she quickly wiped it away as she sniffled. "I wish he still loved Eomma. I wish he'll be a part of our family. I wish he'll love us, Halmeoni."

It broke her heart watching her granddaughter holding onto a future unknown. She knew to herself that it was still bleak if he'll ever accept the twins in his life once he found out. But, she was still determined to make sure they will be positive in the process. 

"Hee Young-ah," she rubbed her back. "We don't know what the future holds, alright? But, whatever happens, we'll still try to make our plan work. We won't give up, alright?"

She nods, before wounding her arms around her grandmother. "Halmeoni, I really hope my wishes come true."

She was silent, smoothing down her hair as she continued. "I really want to have an appa. I really wish that he'll love us. I wish he loves Eomma. I wish they'll get married. I wish..."

And as Hee Young whispered her wishes towards her, Halmeoni raised her silent prayers as well, praying that Hee Youngs small words would be heard by the gods and goddesses, hoping that their fates would be weaved tightly by their hands and they will cross, wishing that at the very end, her daughter and him would find their way back home, back to each other.