“No.”

Sooyoung drops the chocolates and flowers with a gasp. “I haven’t even said anything!”

Wendy bites on her sandwich. “Whether you say something or not, my answer will always be ‘no’.”

Pouting, Sooyoung picks up the flowers and chocolates before sitting on the vacant swing beside Wendy’s. “You really don’t miss what we had, do you, unnie?”

“Stop making it sound dramatic. I’m busy. You don’t know how packed my weekend schedule is. I bet unnie can’t make it either. She's even busier than I am.”

“I lured her with rice cakes but it didn’t work this time.”

“She must really be busy then. Try luring her with carrot cake.”

“I’m actually considering that as we speak.”

They lapse into comfortable silence, munching on their lunch while watching kids run around the grounds. A little girl comes running towards them then, waving a piece of paper while sporting such a huge grin they can’t help but smile back.

“Teacher Joy! Look!” she barrels straight into Sooyoung, making her drop the chocolates and flowers again. Wendy picks it up and holds it for her.

“Wow! Did Gyuri draw this?” Sooyoung gushes over the girl’s work of art, tone and expression doing a 180.

“Yup!” Gyuri puffs up her chest proudly.

“Whoa, our Gyuri is a natural artist! Is this me?” the child nods. Sooyoung gasps dramatically. “This is amazing! It looks exactly like Teacher Joy!”

Wendy snorts. The drawing looked like a hominid. Sooyoung glares at her. She pretends to choke on her sandwich instead.

“Why don’t you go draw another one?” Sooyoung tells the kid. “This time for Dr. Son?”

Gyuri looks at Wendy warily. “She scared me earlier.”

Sooyoung gave Wendy a what-did-you-do-to-this-precious-child look. “Really? Why? What did she do to my Gyuri?”

“Sh-She pulled out my teeth.”

“Tooth.” Wendy automatically corrects. Sooyoung sends her another glare which she replies with a shrug. “It’s imperative to know the difference at a young age. And Dr. Son didn’t pull out anything. I just counted your teeth, remember?” she told the girl.

“Dr. Son only took a look. She was looking for the baddies.” Sooyoung makes a frowny face. “If Dr. Son didn’t check, your entire mouth might be in a lot of ouchie for a long time! Do you want that to happen?”

Gyuri shakes her head.

Sooyoung smiles. “Getting your teeth checked radiates a big good girl energy. Wonder Woman would be amazed! Now, go play with your friends.” she pats the girl’s head.

“That drawing was honestly accurate.” Wendy comments as they watch Gyuri run back to her friends.

“ off.” Sooyoung takes her chocolates and flowers back.

Wendy gapes at her. “Wow. The duality.” she crumples her wrapper, munching the last of her sandwich before checking her watch. She still has time to chat before resuming with the dental check-ups. “Seulgi told me you told her about your plan.”

Sooyoung rolls her eyes. “Of course, she did. She always asks you before doing anything. What are you, her mom?” she clicks her tongue. “She's all for it, of course. And I’m sure she's busy too. Oh, well. I guess she's the only one who values this friendship.”

Wendy rolls her eyes. Sooyoung's getting dramatic again. “Where’s Yerim?”

Sooyoung pops a chocolate in . “She likes eating in the cafeteria.”

Wendy grabs Sooyoung’s tumbler and takes a swig. “She’s not in your class, right?”

“Thank God, no.” Sooyoung swats her hand away when she tries to take a chocolate. “The audacity! You’re not saying yes and now you’re trying to take one?”

Wendy huffs. “I hope you get cavities.” she gets up, angrily stomping to the mobile dental clinic parked just around the curb.

“Saying that should go against the oaths you took and whatever!”

Wendy slams the door and Sooyoung can’t help but laugh. As much as Wendy calls her a drama queen, she must’ve failed to realize she’s becoming one too. Picking up her tumbler, Sooyoung heads to the faculty room to fetch her things.

Classes are done for today and the parents have come to fetch their kids. She made plans with Yerin this afternoon because unlike other people who are supposed to be her best friends, somebody actually cares enough to make time and grab coffee with her.

“Hey, Miss Park, did you hear?”

Sooyoung pauses in the middle of retouching her makeup to look at her colleague. “About what?”

“The chairman of the foundation is apparently stepping down. He’s going to pass the position to one of his children, I hear.”

Sooyoung resumes her business. “Oh, really?” she absently replies, not really interested.

“What do you think? They say the eldest isn’t interested in the position at all. And she's not yet married too. She must be around the same age as you.”

Sooyoung puts the last of her things away. “I don’t know, I don’t really care about such politics.” she smiles, picking up her bag. “I better go now. See you tomorrow.”

On her way to her car, she stops in the middle of the grounds and does a detour, heading to the mobile dental clinic instead of the parking lot. She gives the receiving nurse a smile and a nod before barging in.

She pops her head into the curtains, takes in the scene of Wendy cutely singing ‘Baby Shark’ while sticking metal things into a child’s mouth for a second before announcing, “I’m leaving to meet Yerin. We’re going to have dinner together too so don’t wait up.”

Wendy gives her a quick thumbs up. Sooyoung resumes her route to the parking lot, taking out her phone to send a message in their group chat. "I’m telling y’all one last time: LET’S HAVE A REUNION THIS WEEKEND!!!"

 

 

***

 

 

 🤡tHE eNTirE ciRCuS🤡

 

I’m telling y’all one last time: LET’S HAVE A REUNION THIS WEEKEND!!!
stop pretending to be busy!!!
or I swear to god I –


 

Seulgi chuckles at Sooyoung’s consecutive chats. Joohyun had already left her on ‘seen’.

Feeling bad for their friend, she starts typing.

 

Hahahaahaha
I’m in

 

“Because Chanhyuk got into a car accident, we managed to get a C.E from a different team to fill in. You’ll meet him tomorrow. Kyuhyun, show him around and brief him about the project, will you?”

“Yes, sir.”

KANG SEULGI THE ONLY WOMAN EVER
the shared house is available ryt

Yea, y?

let’s gather there just like the old timessss
IM MANIFESTING

hahahhahaha ok

BAE JOOHYUN STOP LEAVING ME ON SEEN
WENDY SON SAY SOMETHING

she has this gc on mute


“Miss Kang”

Seulgi looks up from her phone. The director doesn’t look too happy. “Yes?”

“Do you have any questions?”

“You’re saying that a new C.E will be joining the team tomorrow and we should brief him about the project so we can finish the schematics on time, right? If so, then no, I don’t have any questions.” she replies, grinning.

The man stares at her smile, speechless. Unable to tell if she’s being insolent or innocent, he clears his throat instead and addresses the rest of the room, “If nobody has questions, then we’re done here.”

Everybody mutters their collective thanks as they file out of the conference room. Seulgi heads straight to her office, unaware of the looks she's getting, as always.

Floor plans and paperwork are littered all over her desk and crumpled papers are all over the floor. So much for a good work environment. She quickly tidies up before sitting at her table, going over her schedule for the next few days: meetings, meetings, meetings, and – oh, look! More meetings.

Her work is cheerful like this.

A knock sounded at the door. “Come in.” Seulgi says.

Kim Sohee walks in and hands her a folder. “Here are the floor plans for the third floor that you were asking for, ma’am.”

“Ah, yes, thank you.” Seulgi skims through its contents. The woman continues to stand there and she wonders why she’s not leaving yet. “Is there anything else?”

She hangs her head. “Yes. Well…the sections, elevations, and sketch diagrams were all coming along well but the thing is…the flash drive was corrupted and…everything was…deleted…I’m so sorry, ma’am.”

Oh.

It’s like a dump truck just hit her face. Seulgi rapidly blinks before pursing her lips. Weeks of hard work down the drain, just like that. She takes a deep breath, massaging her temples

“Is there at least any sort of backup?” she asks, voice even.

Her heart falls when Sohee shakes her head.

“Ah.”

Sohee apologizes again. “I’m so sorry.”

Seulgi takes another deep breath, head already racing. “You do understand that this means more overtime for the team, right?”

“Yes, ma’am. I’m so sorry. It’s my fault.”

Seulgi flips through her planner aka a bunch of messy scrawls, scratches, and doodles that can only be understood by her. “If we work double time, we can still get everything ready before our next meeting with the client. You should go and start working now.”

The woman nods. “I’m really, really sorry.”

Seulgi smiles at her. “It can still be fixed.” she says. “But next time, remember to always make copies as a backup, okay?”

Sohee nods, apologizes again, before finally leaving the office.

Sighing, Seulgi turns on her computer. As it boots, she grabs her phone to dial a friend. “Unnie,” she sobs into the receiver

A sigh. “What is it again?”

“Somebody just accidentally deleted all the files we’ve been working on. All that hard work!” Seulgi wails. “Unnie! Why did it have to be corrupted? Why?”

“How am I supposed to know.”

“Unnie!”

Another sigh. “You pulling an all-nighter tonight?”

“Yes…” she pouts as she starts working, balancing her phone between her shoulder and ear. “I have to. Or else we’re all finished.”

“I’m sure it’s nothing you can’t handle.”

“Well, yes, but—!” she sobs again. “I wanted to have dinner with Sunmi-unnie! It’s been a while and I miss her and if this goes on, she might break up with me and I really hate going over time! I’m going to miss my favorite show! It’s the final episode tonight, for heaven's sake!”

The woman on the other line chuckles. “We both know she's not going to break up with you. As for the show, there are replays. Or you can always watch online.”

“But unnie!”

“Stop whining. Your team might hear you. Go call your girlfriend and complain to her instead. I’m busy.”

“No, that would be childish and uncool. I don't want to seem like a child.”

“Seulgi.”

“Yeah?”

“You are a child.”

“I’m not a child!” she argues. “I’m a woman.”

“Right. Well, I have things to do and so do you. If you’re done bothering me, go back to work, woman.”

Seulgi clicks her tongue. “You cold person. I should’ve called Wendy instead.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“She’s volunteering at Sooyoung's school right now, isn’t she? She must be busy.”

“And I’m not?”

Seulgi shrugs. “You’re the boss. You’d be fine.”

“I’m not even going to argue with you. It’s pointless.”

“Did I just make a lawyer back off in an argument?” Seulgi gasps. “My one brain cell did that!”

“I’m hanging up.”

 

***


 

“All done! That wasn’t scary at all, right?” Wendy smiles at the kid before grabbing something from the drawer and hiding it behind her back. “Because Hyunjun's such a good boy and did so well, Dr. Son has a reward for him. Do you wanna see?”

He eagerly nods with a wide grin.

“Dugudugudugudugu…” Wendy makes silly drum roll sounds, making him laugh. “Ta-da! It’s Doraemon!” she breaks into the Doraemon theme song, playfully making the tiny plush waddle to the boy who breaks into delighted giggles. “What do you say?”

“Thank you, Dr. Son!”

Wendy ruffles his hair. “Doraemon here will make sure your teeth stay healthy, okay?” she takes the plushie and starts talking in her best Doraemon voice, which, really, is y. Fortunately, kids would usually be too busy laughing – at her lame attempt, maybe. “You should brush your teeth three times a day, every after meals, okay? Always remember, too much candy is a no-no!”

With that, she sends Hyunjun away. She stretches, rolling and massaging her shoulders. Her work is always a pain in the neck, literally. But interacting with the kids makes it all worth it. Their cuteness makes up for the body aches.

“How many do we have left?” She throws her gloves in the bin.

“There’s still five kids, doc.”

“Darn. Alright, please send the next one in.”

She checks her phone as the nurses change the equipment. Aside from new appointment updates, she has no other messages – well, except for that one group chat with 14 unread messages.

 

🤡tHE eNTirE ciRCuS 🤡

I’m telling y’all one last time: LET’S HAVE A REUNION THIS WEEKEND!!!
stop pretending to be busy!!!
or I swear to god I –

 

Hahahaahaha
I’m in

KANG SEULGI THE ONLY WOMAN EVER
the shared house is still available ryt

Yea, y?

let’s gather there just like the old timessss
IM MANIFESTING

hahahhahaha ok

BAE JOOHYUN STOP LEAVING ME ON SEEN
WENDY SON SAY SOMETHING

she has this gc on mute

 

 

Sighing, Wendy types her reply.

 

What are yall so noisy abt

OMG SHES ALIVE
weekend sleepover at the shared house
karaoke!
movies!
video games!

pizza!
chicken!
rice cake!

beer!
soju!

I told u im busy

it doesn’t have to be this weekenddd

nxt weekend?

the weekend after that?

all my weekends are booked :P

bull
fyi I have a copy of ur schedule
[attachment]

oop
exposedt 👀
 

“Dr. Son?”

Wendy puts her phone away to meet the child by the curtain. She pulls down her mask to smile at her. “Hello. Saeron, right?”

“Yes,” the little girl shyly mutters her greeting,

“How are you feeling today?” Wendy squats down, trying to meet her eyes. “Are you nervous?”

“N-No.”

“Really? What a brave girl. How do you brush your teeth?”

Saeron demonstrates with her hesitant tiny hand gestures that makes Wendy want to coo. She’s just too cute!

“Wow, you do it very well!” she grabs a dental model, “You should keep it up because when bugs get into your teeth, it will rot and develop a hole like this.” She shows her the decay on the model, “You wouldn’t like that, would you, Saeron?”

“…I wouldn’t.”

“Right? Should you eat a lot of candies and chocolates?”

“Yes.”

“Yes? Are you sure?”

“I’ll just brush my teeth after I eat them.”

Wendy laughs. “Eating sweets is fine but eating too much is a no-no, okay? Now, do you see this?” she pulls out another tiny Doraemon plushie from inside her coat. “It’s Doraemon! Now, look, Doraemon is going to lie down on this chair. Do you want to lie down with him?”

Saeron glances at the suspicious metals around the chair and shakes her head. “No.”

Smart child. Wendy wouldn’t want to lie down anywhere with anything that’s a ‘he’ either. “Why not? Doraemon will be sad. He’s lonely to lie down alone here. He needs a friend.”

Saeron backs away, “No.”

The nurse meets Wendy's eyes, waiting for a signal to help but the dentist shakes her head.

“You don’t like Spongebob? Who do you like then?” she tries again.

“…Elsa.”

Wendy gasps. “Should we call Elsa for help?” she knocks rhythmically on the drawer, “Elsa? Do you wanna build a snowman?” she sings before opening it and pulling out the Elsa doll she fortunately brought. When dealing with children, you always bring Elsa along. “Come on! Let’s lie down, Saeron!” she puppets, then in her normal voice says, “Elsa is asking you to join her!”

The girl hesitates.

Wendy continues with her Elsa-voice, “If you’re a good girl, Anna and Olaf will come join us too!”

That must’ve been tempting enough. Saeron finally walks over to the dental chair. Wendy lifts her up and settles her down, exchanging relieved looks with the nurse. She gives the doll for Saeron to hug as she clips on the bib.

“Y-You won’t use that?” The girl points to the dental air water spray. “I’m not getting a shot, right?”

“Hm? This?” Wendy picks up the equipment. “No, no, you’re not getting a shot. This isn’t a shot. It’s a really cool toy. Look.” she sprays it to her hand. “Wow, it’s refreshing! Elsa, too.” she sprays it to the doll, “Ooh! It’s mist. Mist. It’s good for the skin.” she sprays it to the girl’s cheek. “It’s really nice, right? It’s not scary at all. Now, can Saeron please open for doctor to take a look?”

Saeron turns her face away, “I don’t wanna.”

“Okay then, if Elsa does it first, will Saeron do it too?” Wendy doesn’t wait for an answer and goes straight to checking the doll’s stitched mouth. “Wow, Elsa is a good girl. Now, Saeron too. Let’s open wide. Doctor is only going to count your teeth.”

Saeron opens hesitantly and Wendy quickly takes a look. “Good girl. Let’s see, one, two, three, four, five...”

 

 

***

 

 

“You call this a proper compilation?”

The woman’s cold voice sends chills down Eunwoo’s spine. Her tone is even and her expression is neutral but he’s already shaking. She sounds so calm and that’s what makes it scarier – like a bomb no one knows when it would blow up.

Buzz.

“Is putting on your tie the only thing you know how to do?”

He keeps his head hung low and chooses to reply with silence.

Buzz.

“I gave you that assignment three days ago. Three days. Should be enough time to get everything properly done, don’t you think?”

He can feel her ice-cold gaze piercing through his flesh and freezing his bones. Ah, this woman really makes him question his late decision to enter law school.

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

He tries not to be distracted by the lawyer’s phone vibrating like crazy. He briefly wonders if the woman noticed, and if not is he supposed to tell her that she should probably check her phone before eating him alive?

“Intern.”

Probably not.

“Y-Yes, ma’am?”

“What did I tell you when you first came here?”

He remembers it clear as day, fortunately. His first impression of Attorney Bae is quite unforgettable.

“Be work oriented. Remember that the result validates the deed.” he recited.

The woman is quiet for a heavy moment and Eunwoo waits for death to fall upon him but when his superior speaks again, her tone remains steady, yet steely.

“No matter how dumb, clumsy, or stupid you acted, if you get an appropriate result, all those things get vitiated. Observe closely,” she hits the table, making him flinch. “Ask questions,” another hit, “Take notes,” and another. “Law is a business of perfection where mistakes can end careers. One error and your personal assets and those of your partners are at risk. Do you understand?”

“Y-Yes, ma’am…”

“Do you understand?”

“Yes, ma’am.” he repeats, firmer.

“Now get out of my sight.” She grabs her coat and purse before marching out of the office. Eunwoo scrambles out of her way.

“How did it go?” At the doorway, the law firm’s divorce lawyer Attorney Jennie Kim popped in, holding a cup of steaming coffee.

Eunwoo shivered like his superior’s vibrating phone. “It went alright, ma’am.” he lied.

Attorney Kim snorts. “For an aspiring lawyer, you lie lousily. What did she say?”

“She…wait, she didn’t tell me to do anything.” Eunwoo realized. “Oh my god, what am I supposed to do?”

At the elevator, Attorney Bae Joohyun rides down to the ground floor. She checks her watch. She's late. She taps her foot impatiently when the elevator stops and Kim Taeyeon, CEO of the firm, steps in tapping away on her phone.

“Hey, Joohyun, nice timing. Look at this,” the woman crowds her personal space, shoving her phone to her face and scrolling so fast through the photos of dresses Joohyun can barely take a good look. “Which one do you think Yerim would like?”

“You’re buying her a dress? All of a sudden?”

“Yes, why not? Anything for my baby girl.”

Joohyun pushes the device away. “Just choose whichever.”

“Hmm, purple? Or pink?”

“Purple.”

“Are you sure that’s not your personal preference, Attorney Bae?”

“You’re going to pick that one anyway.”

“You’re right. I hate pink.” Taeyeon taps on the purple one, ‘add to cart’. “Aren’t you going to read that? Your phone’s been buzzing non-stop it’s driving me crazy.”

“It’s just the kids wrecking the group chat, as usual.” Joohyun briefly opens the chat before closing it again, just to clear her notifications. “I heard Senator Lee dropped by.”

“Yep.”

“What did he say?

Taeyeon’s smile doesn’t fade but it does turn colder. “Telling you would be a breach of the lawyer confidentiality agreement, don’t you think?”

 

 

***

 

 

“That’s the last one for today, doc.”

Wendy groans as she stretches on her seat, cracking bones satisfyingly here and there. “Ah, finally.” She takes off her mask and gloves, dumping it in the trashcan before standing and stretching again. Sitting for long hours straight, one stretch isn’t enough.

She starts helping clear the equipment and tools for sterilizing but the nurse stops her. “You can go rest now, doctor. We can take care of this.”

“Are you sure? But—”

“No, buts. Go now. You must be exhausted.”

Wendy relents, knowing that Nurse Jang won’t take ‘no’ for an answer. “Alright. I’ll leave it to you then.” she grabs her bag. “Thanks for your hard work,”

She exits the mobile, taking off her white coat and draping it on her arm before massaging her shoulder. She’s about to head straight to the parking lot when she spots a familiar girl at the playground, making her pause. What’s that kid still doing here at this hour? As far as Wendy knows, she’s supposed to be home hours ago. She approaches her to find out.

“…what you just did is a violation of the Flower Protection Act of 2007!” the girl was saying as Wendy walked up behind her. She was standing there with arms akimbo, glowering at a boy twice her size. “Let’s take this to court!”

Wendy couldn’t hold back a snort. “What is this, Ace Attorney?”

The girl turns to her and her face splits into a grin. “Aunt Wendy!” she jumps into the dentist’s arms, making the latter grunt. The accused boy takes this opportunity to run. Wendy lets him. He’s too young to go to jail.

“Hello, Miss Kim Yerim.” Wendy asks the five-year-old girl. “Where’s ahjumma?”

“Away.” Yerim answers before suddenly frowning. “You made me lose my suspect.”

“Oh, I’m sorry for the interruption, your honor. What was his charge?”

“Nature abuse.” Yerim replies, still with that cute scowl. “I’ll get him tomorrow.”

Wendy can’t help but laugh. “You’re adorable. I’m sure you will.” she kisses her cheek, Yerim whining in protest and wiping lipstick stain off her cheek. “Where did you even learn all that?”

“Who else? Of course I learned it from…” she trails off, eyes drifting just behind Wendy as her face lights up with glee. “Her!”

Yerim wriggles in Wendy’s arms so much she has to put her down. Turning, she watches as the girl runs straight into the arms of a woman in a no-nonsense suit. Wendy smiles at the image, taking a mental screenshot of the moment. Their eyes meet and she starts moving, meeting the other halfway.

“Hi.” The woman greets.

Wendy doesn’t like the way her eyes look and how her voice sounds so she wears a teasing grin to kill the somber atmosphere before it gets any bigger.

“Flower Protection Act? Really, Joohyun-unnie?”

Joohyun shrugs, a smile tugging on her lips. “I wanted my daughter to grow up eco-friendly.”

Said eco-friendly daughter in her arms pokes her cheek. “What took you so long?”

“I’m so sorry, honey. Mommy had to take care of something.”

“Flower Protection Act violators?”

“Well—yeah, I guess you can say that. I’ll make it up to you. What about chicken for dinner?”

Yerim beams at that and then her smile grows brighter, if that’s even possible. “Let’s take Aunt Wendy with us!”

Wendy had been warmly watching them interact until Joohyun suddenly looked at her. Tentative. Questioning. “Dinner?” she offered.

Wendy gives her an apologetic smile. “I already made plans with Sooyoung. Unless we let her join too?”

Joohyun scrunches her nose at the idea. “No, thank you. She won’t shut up about that grand plan of hers. I’ve already had enough with the flooding notifications, thanks.”

“She’s been too much, right?”

Joohyun gives her a you-have-no-idea look. “I was having a serious talk with an intern but my phone kept buzzing nonstop.” she huffs. “I didn’t know if I wanted to laugh or yell in rage.”

Wendy laughs again. The way Joohyun talks so animatedly is just so entertaining. “You should just mute the chat. I can do it for you if you want.”

“No, it’s fine. I’m getting used to it anyway.” Joohyun shifts Yerim in her arms. “How was work?”

“The kids were fun.” Wendy replies, “Yerim here was especially brave.” she reached over and booped Yerim’s nose, almost getting her finger bitten.

“You know what, mom? All my classmates were shaking to meet Wendy but I wasn’t nervous at all!” Yerim bragged.

“Really?” Joohyun looks to Wendy for confirmation. The latter nods vigorously, backing Yerim up.

“Calmest kid I’ve ever worked on. Got the strongest teeth too.” Wendy bares her teeth as a demonstration, making Joohyun laugh.

“It’s all thanks to you.”

“No, I didn’t do anything. It’s because Yerim is a good girl. Isn’t that right, Yerim-ah?”

The girl hides in the crook of Joohyun’s neck, squealing and giggling. Wendy settled on pinching her tiny leg. “What about you, unnie? How’s work?”

The mere mention of work makes the woman sigh in exhaustion. Wendy can actually see the weariness in her features despite the makeup. It’s understandable—between having a hectic career and single handedly raising a child, one’s got to be tired.

“You’re a superhero.” Wendy says before Joohyun can answer her question. “Yerim, if you think mommy’s a superhero, give her three kisses.”

Yerim plants three quick pecks on her mother’s cheek. “Aunt Wendy, give her kisses if you think so too.”

Joohyun chokes at that. Wendy bursts into loud, rambunctious laughter. Yerim looks at the adults with confusion. “What’s so funny? Wendy, why aren’t you giving mom kisses?”

“Kim Yerim!” Joohyun chides.

“You’re too cute.” Wendy says before gesturing for them to start walking to the parking lot. The sooner she gets this over with, the better.

“Work’s busy, as usual.” Joohyun answers Wendy’s question, finally recovering from her coughing fit, face on fire. “Meetings after meetings, endless paperwork…it’s nothing interesting. I got off early today to pick Yerim up since ahjumma had an emergency.”

“You should’ve just told me. I’m already here anyway.”

“I didn’t know you’d be here.”

“What about Junmyeon-oppa?”

“He’s in Japan for another seminar.”

“Again? But he just got home.”

Joohyun shrugs. “Yeah, well, there’s nothing he can do about it.”

Wendy hums. “Well, next time, just call me if ahjumma’s not available, okay? I’m never too busy for our Yerim.” she smiles at the girl who had fallen asleep, probably bored by their conversation. Their eyes meet and Joohyun smiles back.

“Alright, I’ll take you up on that.”

They lapse into silence, arms brushing as they walk. The air is charged, though the conversation was light. It’s always been like that with Joohyun. Comfortable but tense. But maybe it’s just Wendy. She’s not really sure—she doesn’t want to be sure.

The parking lot is suddenly seeming a lot farther than she remembers. Or is it just because they’re moving at a glacial pace? She doesn’t speed up though. If she does, Joohyun would match her step and Yerim might wake up. Definitely just because of Yerim. Not because she wants to spend more time or anything.

“I heard Eric’s getting ready for fellowship.” Joohyun breaks the ice.

“How did you know?”

“I do lurk around on social media sometimes, you know.”

Wendy chuckles. “He’s an ambitious guy. Lots of talent too. He’ll go far.”

“Sounds like everything’s going well between you.” Joohyun observes. “Do I have to get a white dress soon? Or will the motif be blue?”

Wendy rolls her eyes. “I swear, unnie, you’re starting to sound like my mom. We don’t plan on getting married yet.”

“Why not? He’s more than decent. I’d snatch him if I wasn’t already married myself.”

Wendy laughs. “You won’t.” she trails off. “...right?”

Joohyun smiles dryly, meeting her eyes for a second before quickly looking away as though singed. “Yeah, I won’t.”

Wendy clears . She stares at her feet for a moment, at her small, stalling steps, convincing herself that it’s nothing. It’s been ten years. Nothing ever went on between them. It’s all just her and her unrequited feelings.

“You look tired.” she blurts, anything to steer the conversation somewhere else.

“Maybe because I am.” Joohyun chuckles wryly. “I’m used to it though. It’s part of the job.”

If this goes on, Joohyun will eventually burn herself out. She might be the greatest woman of this generation but she’s still human and humans have their limits. But knowing how much of a workaholic Joohyun is, it would be difficult to convince her that she needs to slow down. Still, Wendy needs to make it happen.

Joohyun suddenly laughs, startling Wendy out of her thoughts. “Don’t look at me like that. I know that look.”

“What look?”

“That look. With the brows and that pout. Like a dejected puppy. I’m fine, Seungwan. You don’t have to worry.”

“You need to take a break.” Wendy says, suddenly hyper-aware of her crinkled brows. She tries to relax them but they just keep trying to meet. “Take a day off. It won’t hurt.”

Joohyun wearily shakes her head, like she’s already given up on the idea of rest. “I would if I could but there’s simply no time.”

“Attend Sooyoung’s plan this weekend.” Wendy continues as if she didn’t hear what Joohyun just said. “They’re setting up karaoke in the shared house so you can sing your heart out. Unwind. Destress. You need it.”

“Seungwan–”

“I’ll take care of everything. You can relax for the entire weekend then after that, you can go back to that busy lawyer life you like so much.”

“But—”

“No buts. You can have other associates handle your work just for three days tops. I’ll call Taeyeon-unnie, tell her it’s doctor’s orders.”

“You’re not even–”

Wendy unleashes her trump card. “I’ll bake you carrot cake.” Joohyun pauses at that. “For an entire month.” Wendy adds.

Joohyun nods at once. “Okay.”

Wendy almost lets out a whoop but stops, remembering the sleeping Yerim. Instead, she quietly squeals and jumps around in glee. She did it! She has done the impossible! She made the workaholic stop working for a few days!

She looks back, catching Joohyun laughing at her antics and her heart that’s been yearning for ten years skips a beat.

Wendy ignores it, pushing it down until it’s barely even there. And the world resumes its motion—just like clockwork: Joohyun’s her best friend, she’s married, has a child, and Wendy’s in a relationship. A skipping heart doesn’t change that. Feelings don't make everything less complicated. If anything, it makes things worse.

So she forces it to shut up, drowns it in the loud, chanting ‘no’ of her head as she walks back to the woman and relieves her of the child’s weight. They resume their walk to the parking lot, Wendy caressing Yerim’s hair.

If you believe hard enough that something doesn’t exist, your mind will eventually start accepting it.

“Your mom’s a superhero.” She whispers into Yerim’s temple, sealing it with a kiss.

It’s been ten years.

And Wendy still believes.

 

 

***

 

 

“Yerim, please be a dear and pass the salt, will you?”

The girl hops off the bar stool to hand her the salt shaker. Yerim lingers, clinging on Joohyun’s waist as the latter cooks. “Why do you not like chicken, mom?”

“When I was young, I...Kim Yerim, this isn’t salt.”

Yerim is quick to run out of the kitchen, laughing like an imp that she is. Shaking her head, Joohyun watches her hide in the living room before taking the salt herself. At the back of her mind, she always worried Yerim was growing up to be way cheekier than she can handle. She shouldn't have let her hang around Sooyoung so much.

She finishes up her kimchi fried rice before proceeding to cut fruits for Yerim. Work may be demanding but there’s one thing she will never compromise and that’s giving her daughter the time and attention she needs.

“Kim Yerim! Get back here and finish your dinner!”

The little rascal comes rushing back to the dining table, giggling. Joohyun eyes her, hoping those giggles doesn’t mean another problem to take care of. Yerim’s a smart child but she’s also a tad more hyperactive than most. It’s exhausting but fortunately, she listens well. Joohyun has no idea how she managed to raise her that way but she’s thankful for it. Otherwise she’d be bald before she hits forty.

“How was school?” Joohyun asks at the dinner table, watching Yerim devour another drumstick.

“Itsh phantashc–” Yerim stops talking because Joohyun had given her The Look. She chews and swallows her food before talking again. “It’s fantastic! Wendy was there and everybody was scared of her but I wasn’t even one bit worried.”

Joohyun wonders if she’s aware she already said that earlier but she patiently listens anyway. “So you were a good girl today?” Yerim nods. Joohyun releases the breath she’s holding. “I hope you behave like that everyday.” she mutters under her breath before taking a bite.

“I like Aunt Wendy.” Yerim states, grabbing a chicken wing.

Joohyun's a bit startled by the proclamation. Her daughter, as cheerful as she is, doesn’t really express affection much. “Why?” she finds herself asking.

Yerim shrugs. “She’s funny, she looks like Olaf, and she bakes awesome cookies.”

Joohyun chuckles. “She does, don’t she?”

Yerim stares at her, head tilted to the side. Joohyun raises a questioning brow but the girl doesn’t say anything, as she’s still chewing. Joohyun wipes the smeared sauce from her daughter’s lips while she patiently waits.

“Do you like Wendy?”

Joohyun freezes. Yerim blinks at her innocently, probably wondering why her mother had suddenly malfunctioned.

Damn, can she stop blurting out random things and putting Joohyun in awkward situations?

Retracting her hand, Joohyun thoughtfully hums. She can’t exactly say no, that would be a questionable lie but she can’t really say yes either, because that would be adulterous.

In her case, liking Wendy would never mean the platonic kind.

“What do you think?” she decides to fire back instead. Sometimes, being a lawyer helps. 

“Of course, you do.” Yerim replies. “You’re friends. Friends are supposed to like each other, right?”

Her empty chuckle scrapes her ears. “Yes.” she says, “That’s right.”

After dinner, Joohyun helps Yerim with her homework and as soon as the clock strikes nine, the girl is comfortably tucked in her bed, drinking warm milk, demanding two bedtime stories, and having her check under the bed for monsters before finally drifting to sleep.

Joohyun and her husband are both workaholics so it wasn’t a surprise that they decided to turn the guest bedroom into a study. She had spent more time on her swivel chair than their bedroom, slept on the desk more frequently than on their bed.

Waiting for her laptop to boot, she scrolls through emails on her phone only to get distracted when she gets a message notification. Wendy had sent a message to the group chat.

🤡tHE eNTirE ciRCuS🤡

I’m going.
To that thing ure planning

 

The device vibrates again and Joohyun flinches in surprise.

 

Unnie
I know ure reading this
A promise is a promise 🥺

 

Sometimes, Joohyun loathes her whipped .

 

Yeah, I’m going too

 

She puts her phone away as it erupts in a series of beeps. Sooyoung probably read the messages too, since Seulgi’s probably either already asleep, or drowned in work. She’s becoming immune to the ringing at this point.

“Mommy!”

She just can’t get a break.

Why’s she awake again? Last time she checked, she’s already fast asleep. Sighing, Joohyun heads back to Yerim’s room. The sight of the girl peeking from under a bunch of covers greets her. “I think I heard something under my bed.”

Joohyun plants her hands on her waist. “You’ve already set the nightly schedule back by demanding a second bedtime story and now you want me to check under the bed for monsters again? After I have already confirmed the absence of said monsters?”

Yerim giggles at her tirade. “Please?”

Joohyun rolls her eyes. She laments over being whipped for the second time that night as she crouched, scanning the perimeter for any monstrosity. When she’s sure there’s nothing threatening other than shadows, she goes to sit on Yerim’s bedside.

“There’s no monsters?”

“Only dust bunnies.” she reassures the girl, combing her hair with her fingers. “Go back to sleep now.”

“Sing something for me? Please?” Yerim looks up at her with those large, gleaming eyes and Joohyun can’t have the heart to say no.

“Okay. Cuddle close. Scooch in.” she says, repeating that line from Frozen 2 that Yerim likes so much but her daughter shakes her head.

“No, not that one.” Yerim says. “I want to hear something you want to sing now.”

That made her think. Something she wants to sing now…

“It’s not a song for kids.” she warns.

Yerim shifts to get more comfortable. “I want to hear it.”

Joohyun purses her lips, hesitating, but Yerim keeps on giving her that adorable, pleading look. “Fine.” she says and Yerim grins, closing her eyes. Taking a deep breath, Joohyun starts quietly singing,

“You’re my blue, just like always. You’re my blue, only filling me with longing. It spreads but it’s beautiful.”

Joohyun’s eyes glazed over, mentally going back to a time in winter ten years back, when they first met. When everything was simple. When happiness was just a wall away, tangible and personified in the form of dimpled cheeks and warm brown eyes.

“The words “I love you” resembles you. The words “I love you” will never reach you.”

There were chances. Chances she ignored. Chances she took. Chances she missed. Each entailed regret and with regret came cowardice.

“A heart that’s gone can never be caught.”

Sometimes, two people are only meant to meet, but not meant to be.

“Why do you sound so sad?”

Joohyun is startled out of her reverie. Yerim is looking at her with such concern and confusion.

“Why are you still awake? Sleep now, honey.'' She sings a different song, caressing Yerim’s hair. Eventually, the girl’s breathing evens out.

Joohyun watches her, gingerly brushing stray locks of hair away from her face. If there’s one thing she doesn’t regret about this marriage, it would be Kim Yerim. She wouldn’t trade her for anything else in the world. For her daughter, everything’s worth it.

She plants a kiss on her daughter’s forehead, whispering “Love you.” into her skin before finally leaving her room, returning to the study.

She busies herself with work, prohibiting her mind from drifting away to unwanted places of the past. She listens to voicemails as she reads and answers emails, marks documents, and review materials. She focuses on the fine print of black on white, hoping to erase phantom traces of blue along with wishful touches of pink.

It’s not a thought she can continue to entertain. Not when things are different. She had tried and failed. Not everyone gets their preferred happy ending. She’s had ten years to accept that and she has accepted that. Being married to Junmyeon and having Yerim is her happy ending now and it’s been great. But memories and thoughts are still there, pelting her with stones of regrets and what ifs every once in a while no matter how much she tries to dodge and hide.

Her phone rings an hour later and she automatically answers without looking at the caller ID, already expecting it to be a client or a junior associate. Or maybe she’s just jumping at the first possible distraction that can take her mind off of her unearthed feelings that are supposed to be dead.

“Attorney Bae, speaking.”

“Hi.”

Joohyun pauses reviewing the documents to read Junmyeon on her phone screen. “Oh, it’s you.” She sets the call on loudspeaker and resumes her work.

“Yup. Just me.” a pause. “Working?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m not disturbing anything, am I?”

Her phone beeps. Joohyun glances over. There’s the call she’s been expecting. She lets it go to voicemail. “No, not really. Did the seminar go well?”

“As well as seminars can go, I guess. It’s just some balding old dude going on and on about figures for hours on end. You know. The usual.” he chuckles. “What about you? How’s work?”

Joohyun sighs. It’s always ‘how’s work?’ and never ‘how’s Joohyun?’ “Same old, same old.”

“Is Yerim there?”

“She’s already asleep. It’s way past her bedtime.”

“Oh, right. I should’ve called earlier. She’s doing good?”

“Yeah.” Joohyun moves on to another document. “Wendy went to her school today for dental check-ups and stuff.”

“Really? I bet Yerim loved that.” he says. “We owe Yerim’s teeth to Wendy. I swear, we need to take her out to dinner sometime.”

Joohyun replies with a noncommittal hum. “You’ll make it next week, right?”

“What’s up next week?”

“The PTA meeting. I already got an email from Mr. Woo.”

“Why? You can’t go?”

“No, it’s just better for Yerim if we’re both there for her. It’s on Sunday. Your flight’s on Saturday, right?”

“Yeah, okay, I’ll go.” he yawned.

“You should rest. You still have to wake up early tomorrow.”

“You’re right.” he stifles another yawn. “Good night, honey. Love you.”

Joohyun halts, chewing on her bottom lip. She spins her pen.

You’re my blue.

She spins it again.

A heart that’s gone can never be caught.

“...love you too.”

 

 

***

 

 

Kang Seulgi had always been the talk of the building.

Everybody likes her. Girls and boys, they all want her. Whether it’s because of her lethal charisma, sharp gaze, innocent charm, kind and patient temperament, smile that brightens up the world, or the fact that she’s oblivious to all of these, nobody’s really sure. It just happens – whether you like it or not.

So, when she shows up at work wearing spectacles again after a long time, it created a bit of a buzz (and a whole lot of squeals). This isn’t high school but they like to pretend that it is every once in a while.

The woman in question walks around the building with a cup of coffee and a smile for everyone, blissfully ignorant of the effect of her forgetting to put on contacts this morning because she’s running late. She’s scrolling through their group chat, reading messages she didn’t read last night which were just Sooyoung screaming all by herself.

“What are you smiling at on your phone, Miss Kang?”

Seulgi looks up, seeing Kyuhyun walking with her to the elevator. “Hey, oppa. It’s just the girls. Wendy and Joohyun-unnie finally agreed to meet up with all of us.”

“You mean bio major Wendy Son and IR major Bae Joohyun from college? Wow, after all these years you still keep in touch?”

“This friendship is tighter than ‘till death do us part, oppa. Sooyoung would drag us with her to hell in the afterlife.”

Kyuhyun laughs. “I can see that happening. It’s nice that you’re still friends. You guys were pretty famous back then, performing at uni festivals and whatnot.”

Seulgi grimaces at the reminder. “Please don’t bring that up again. It gives me goosebumps. The bad kind.”

“Why not? You were pretty cool. How did you even convince the stoic Bae Joohyun to join you?”

“Let’s just say involved a lot of puppy eyes from Wendy.” Seulgi says. “What’s your schedule today?”

“I’m going to show the new C.E around. Nothing fun. You, however...” Kyuhyun points at her. “I heard you’re going to meet that popular chef client.”

“Kwon Yuri, yeah.” she grins. “I’m excited.”

He groans. “You get all the hot ladies.”

“All ladies are hot.” she argues.

“Oh, you smooth talker, you.”

She shrugs. “I speak nothing but the truth.”

Seulgi arrives at her floor and she bids Kyuhyun goodbye. She has 20 minutes to prepare everything she needs for today’s first schedule. She has a meeting with renowned chef, Kwon Yuri.

She loves food so naturally, she’s also a big fan of the woman. She watches her videos online whenever she can. Kwon Yuri’s an excellent cook, but she’s also entertaining and that’s one of the reasons why Seulgi likes her more than other celebrity chefs out there. Needless to say, she was ecstatic to have her as her client.

She arrives at the café just in time and sees a woman sitting on the table she’s already reserved for them.

"You’re early, Miss. Kwon. I hope you didn’t have to wait long.”

The woman turns around and Seulgi rapidly blinks. Dark hair and sharp eyes–very pretty but this isn’t Kwon Yuri. She may be close to blind but she does know the chef doesn’t look like this.

She’s probably looking at her weird because the woman explains, “I'm here on Kwon Yuri’s behalf.”

Seulgi finally recovers. That makes sense. At least way better than the dozen ridiculous circumstances she had created in her head in those few seconds of silence which may or may not have included possible alien abduction theories. “Oh, I see. She didn’t mention anything to me though. Do you mind if I sit?”

“Please.” the woman gestures for her to sit. “She's down with a cold today. Or so she says.” her tone is as emotionless as her face but there’s a faint bite of contempt in it, like she doesn’t even want to be there and is currently blaming Kwon Yuri for everything. “I ordered you a drink. I hope you don’t mind cappuccino.”

“Not at all. Thank you.” she offers her hand. “Well then, nice to meet you, Miss..?”

“Jung.” the woman takes her hand, grip firm, skin soft to the touch. “Krystal Jung, Yuri’s sister-in-law.”

“Nice to meet you, Miss. Jung. I’m Kang Seulgi, architect-in-charge for the renovation. I’m sorry, I hope this doesn’t sound rude, but I wasn’t aware Miss Kwon is married.”

“No, no, they’re still engaged. My fault for not adding ‘future’ there, I suppose.” she shrugs nonchalantly. Krystal Jung has a strong aura around her – or maybe it’s just the leather biker jacket and the way she runs her fingers through her dark hair plus that gaze that can cut diamonds and that way of speech that seems to be perpetually monotone. “Now can we please get this over and done with?”

Seulgi laughs at her apparent irritation. Her honesty is refreshing. “Of course. But is it okay to hold this meeting without Miss Kwon?”

Krystal waves her concern off. “She wants to remodel the beach house into something that would fit her fiancé’s taste but it’s supposed to be a surprise – a wedding gift or something – so she sent me instead.”

“Do they plan to move in after the wedding?”

Krystal shrugs. “Dunno. Seems like it.”

“I see. So, I’ll be working with you? All throughout?”

“Maybe.” Krystal shrugs again then raises a brow. “Got a problem with that, architect?”

This would definitely not be the last of Krystal Jung that she’ll see and she doesn’t know her enough to know what to feel about that. She may have come off as a bit rude and cold but Seulgi believes in giving people the benefit of a doubt, so it’s definitely not a problem.

So Seulgi smiles, as is her response to everything else in life. “Of course not. It would be my pleasure.”

Krystal just stares at her blankly before proceeding. “Yuri said she already approved your service proposal so we can go ahead and discuss what we want done.” she nonchalantly picks lint on her nails. “If you talk to her about this, she’ll probably tell you that she wants the shack modernized into a minimalistic block of cement but I know better than that. The beach house is important to them – something about where they first met and all that cheesy stuff – and we don’t want the change to be too drastic. So, what we’re going for is an old hag with the soul of a vintage fashionista kind of vibe. Do you get what I’m saying?”

Seulgi hums in affirmation. “Like, a rustic minimalist vibe to preserve its homey charm while at the same time looking new.” she adjusts her glasses, twirling her pencil in her other hand as she always does when she’s psyched. “I’m thinking maybe turn it into a 2-storey,” she pulls out a photo of the said beach house and starts scribbling her ideas over it. “Open up this part here to serve as a viewing deck overlooking the sea and I think a skylight would be a good idea too. Romantic, perfect for honeymoon. Don’t you think?”

Krystal nods in approval. “We’re on the same page.”

“Should we put up glass walls around the viewing deck or leave it as an open area?”

“An open area would be nice.”

Seulgi scribbles notes in her moleskine. “I looked at the photos and it seems we have a lot of things to replace, since it looks quite old.”

“I was actually thinking of replacing the siding with cedar. Aspen gray, perhaps. Repainting goes without saying. Yuri likes mint green but my sibling’s more on the monochromatic side so maybe a shade lighter.”

“Seafoam?”

“Exactly.”

They discuss different materials to use and argue about which is better and more efficient. Krystal seems to be well-versed in this. Seulgi wonders, as they discuss having a gable or flat roof, if she works in the field, or somewhere similar.

“I’m an interior designer.” Krystal reveals when Seulgi finally gets to ask. “But I’m also interested in architecture and engineering. So,” she finishes her sentence with a shrug.

“I see. That’s interesting, I never would’ve thought. You don’t look the part.”

Krystal smirks, the only change in expression she ever had in the past two hours. “Why? What did I seem like to you?”

Seulgi leans back, taking her in. One thing comes to mind: a very pretty and very scary lady. “I don't know, a model? You’re beautiful and charismatic enough for the job.”

Krystal scoffs, unimpressed. “I hope that’s not your way of buttering me up because it’s not working.”

Seulgi blinks in confusion. Did she say anything wrong? All she did was say what she honestly thought. People sure are weird. “I’m just saying the truth. You are beautiful and charismatic. I’m sure it’s not the first time someone told you so.”

Krystal narrows her eyes, as if Seulgi’s a complex, newly discovered specie that she can’t seem to figure out. Not knowing what to do under such scrutiny, Seulgi smiles to which the woman responds by looking away with a frown and hiding her face behind her cup.

“Is Miss Kwon hiring you to design the interior then?” Seulgi asks to fill in the silence.

“No.” Krystal runs her fingers through her hair, making the silky locks frame her face mesmerizingly.

“Why not? It would be great to work with you.”

“She can’t. And I don’t want to.”

Seulgi decides not to question that. She glances at her list of agenda. “I’m planning to visit the house on Monday next week, have a closer look at the state of things. Is that possible?”

Krystal nods. “I’ll let Yuri know. What time do you plan to go?”

“Maybe after lunch.”

“Okay.”

Seulgi's phone buzzes and she briefly checks the message before immediately gathering her things. “Then if there isn’t anything else, I’ll get going now. My girlfriend’s waiting outside and the more time I spend with a gorgeous woman, the more she seethes.”

Krystal’s eyes widened by a fraction, another major expression change. “Girlfriend?”

“Yes, girlfriend.” Seulgi gives her one last smile, “I hope you don’t have anything against that. Otherwise, I’d have to fight you.”

 

 

***

 

 

Sooyoung is doing God’s work. She narrows her eyes in concentration. The entire country’s–perhaps even the entire world’s–future is in the mercy of her ballpoint pen. Finally, she lets go of the pen and picks up The Stamp, giving the kid’s paper three stars for her incredible work.

She moves on to the next paper. Being a kindergarten teacher has its perks. Aside from being constantly surrounded by adorable kids, she also gets to clock off early, but not without grading their seatwork first.

Sooyoung loves her job. It’s simple, yet meaningful. To be one of the people who can mold someone’s future in such an early stage and the pride of watching these children grow to be remarkable people makes her heart full. She likes this. She’s satisfied with this. Anything else the world can offer can’t even compare.

She had plowed through half the papers when her phone rings.

“Yo, Wendy-unnie.” she greets, “‘Sup?”

“Lunch?” her friend offers.

“Sure. Just let me finish this for a sec.” she gives another student three stars. “Who else is coming?”

“Seulgi’s out with Sunmi-unnie.”

Sooyoung snorts. “Damn, she’s lasting long with this one, huh? How many months has it been, two?”

“Three, actually. A real record breaker.”

“I sense they won’t have a fourth.”

“I’d like to think she finally found a keeper.”

“Bet.” Sooyoung says. “What about unnie?”

“Do you have to ask? Woman probably won’t leave her office even if the building’s on fire.”

“True.” she acknowledges. “That workaholic would burn with her paperwork, alright. Which reminds me, how did you convince her to go this weekend?”

“I told you: carrot cake. It’s her kryptonite.”

“Is it really?”

“What do you mean?”

Sooyoung snickers. “Nothing.”

The funny thing about their group of friends is that their workplace is literally in the same area yet they never find the time to gather together even just for five minutes. Seulgi’s the easiest one to invite. Girl is always game for food, unless she has a lunch appointment with a client or in other cases, her girlfriend of the month. Wendy and Joohyun are the difficult ones. Whenever the latter agrees, something suddenly comes up for the former and vice-versa.

Sooyoung’s not dumb. She’s noticed little things like this for years now. Ever since Joohyun got together with Junmyeon, they have slowly drifted apart. Though they interact normally, they almost never spend time with each other. Both may say they’re just busy but Sooyoung knows that’s crap. Something happened–something changed, but she can’t pinpoint what.

“Did ahjumma pick Yerim up yet?” Wendy asks.

“Yeah, just a while ago.”

“Want me to drive or do we just walk?”

Sooyoung hums, “I’m craving sushi.”

“Okay, drive it is, then.”

Sooyoung giggles. They sound like an old married couple and the idea tickles her. “See you, honey.”

Wendy, being Wendy, plays along. “Yes, darling. I’ll pick you up in 15, okay?”

Sooyoung’s about to respond but a knock on her open door steals her attention. Mr. Woo Dohwan, the teacher next door and the one in-charge of Yerim’s class, was standing by the doorway.

“Alright. Got to go, babe.” she hangs up, going to meet the man by the door. “Mr. Woo. Can I help you with something?”

He smiles sheepishly. “Sorry, were you on the phone with your lover?”

She represses a laugh. “Yeah, something like that.”

“I hope I didn’t interrupt anything.”

She shrugs. “It’s fine. What is it?”

“I was wondering if I can borrow a star stamp? One of my students kind of wrecked mine.”

“Please,” Sooyoung goes to fetch her extra stamp in her desk drawer. “No need to beat around the bush with me. It’s Kim Yerim again, isn’t it?”

“Well…”

Sooyoung laughs. “How can you even break a stamp?” she wonders, shaking her head. “I’m so proud of her.”

Dohwan blinks, confused. “You are?”

“Yeah.” She smirks, “Who do you think she got her impertinence from?”

“I don’t know, her parents?”

She snorts at that. “You ever had a lawyer and an accountant as parents? They are the most uptight pair of people ever. Yerim obviously got it from me, so I’ll take responsibility. Take this.” she gives him the stamp. “It’s yours. Consider it a replacement for the one Yerim broke. So don’t tell her mother, okay? I’ll do the honors. I live for her reaction.” she winks.

He stares at her and she can sense that he sees through her facade. Joohyun got too much on her plate. Sooyoung can take care of tiny matters such as Yerim’s little misbehaviors. Though, of course, if it’s serious, she’ll tell Joohyun as soon as possible. These small things, however, is something she can take care of as a godmother.

He smiles in understanding. “Okay.”

As Dohwan leaves, Sooyoung feels a sudden craving for coffee. And sweets. She considers asking Wendy to bring her some but then she receives a text from the dentist saying she’s already waiting outside.

See, this is why she befriends people. She makes a call before meeting Wendy.

“Hello, oppa? A cup of cappuccino and a slice of chocolate cake, please.”

 

 

***

 

 

Yerim loves her aunties. She will never say it aloud though, especially not to Joy. That woman lives to to no end.

But she does love them so the idea of having the three of them in one place thrilled her. Unlike her mother, those three know how to have fun. Wendy bakes the most awesome cookies, Joy tolerates and supports her shenanigans, and Seulgi’s often the victim of said shenanigans.

She doesn’t remember ever seeing the four of them complete. Maybe the last time was during her first birthday, though, of course, she remembers none of it.

“Were you there during my first birthday?” she asks Wendy. The woman had picked her up from school earlier and brought her to this place they call Red Room, though nothing’s remotely red. Seulgi argues that the walls are red though but they just look brown to Yerim. Maybe Seulgi skipped kindergarten.

Now they’re sitting in the living room, watching her all-time favorite movie Frozen. She’s seated on Wendy’s lap, to be specific. It’s a free real-estate, Joy had said, though Yerim has no idea what that meant. Her tall auntie and Seulgi are currently in the kitchen, preparing food.

Elsa had finished singing ‘Let It Go’, aka the only scene that matters in this movie and so Yerim’s bored and starts to wonder about her aunties and her first birthday.

“Of course, we were.” Wendy answers her question.

“We wouldn’t miss it for the world.” Joy saunters in, a big bowl of gummy bears in arm which she offers to Yerim. “Want some, pipsqueak?”

Before Yerim can reach out, Wendy’s pushing Joy away. “She’s had enough earlier.” she snaps before turning to Yerim, tone and expression remarkably softer. “Too much is a no-no, okay?”

Yerim shrugs. She doesn’t mind. She already stuffed handfuls in all her pockets when Wendy wasn’t looking.

Joy plops down beside them on the couch, obnoxiously munching on the treat, rubbing it in Yerim’s face that she can’t have any. Yerim kind of wishes for her to choke, though she’d never say that aloud in Wendy’s presence.

She tears her eyes off Joy and focuses on Wendy instead. “What was my first birthday like?”

“Well...it was...a birthday party.” Wendy answers, being Wendy. “There were lots of guests and food and drinks and there was music and games...oh, right, you had your doljabi too.”

“Dolja-what?”

“Doljabi.” Wendy patiently repeats.

Yerim blinks. “Dojalbi?”

“No, no. It’s doljabi.”

“Dojalbi.”

“Dol-ja-bi.” Wendy enunciates every syllable, emphasizing on the ‘L’ and the face she makes tickles Yerim into giggles.

“Dojalbi.” she says, snickering. Of course, she got it the first time. Wendy’s facial expressions are just too funny.

“Now you’re just messing with me.” Wendy pinches her nose, making her squeal. “But anyway, doljabi is a tradition every first birthday to bless the baby with a prosperous life ahead and stuff. You were placed in front of various items and the first one or two things you grab is supposed to tell your future career or lifestyle. Like, for example, if you grab a gavel, then they’re apparently likely to become a judge. Something like that.”

Yerim tilts her head to the side. “What did I grab?”

Joy suddenly bursts into laughter. “Her.” she points at Wendy, who rolls her eyes. “Your tiny hand grabbed her finger like your life depended on it.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means, dear child, that you got taste.”

“You grabbed money after.” Wendy interjects, looking absolutely done with Joy.

“Does that mean I’m going to get rich?”

“That means you’re going to become a swindler.” Joy says, earning a glare and a hissed ‘Sooyoung!’ from Wendy.

Yerim turns to Wendy, the only person she trusts with the correct answer in this room. “What’s a swindler?”

Wendy gives Joy a look-what-you-did look. “Well...a swindler…is someone who has a lot of money.”

Someone with a lot of money doesn’t sound bad. Yerim wonders why Wendy was acting like Joy shouldn’t have mentioned it. She actually likes the sound of that.

When she grows up, Yerim wants to become a swindler.

Yes, that sounds like a decent dream.

She pays attention to the film again. It’s the part where they sing ‘For The First Time In Forever Reprise’. She loves this scene, though Elsa and Anna’s parents should’ve just made the latter wear armor instead of repressing Elsa. It would’ve worked out better and make Anna look cool.

“When’s mommy coming?” she asks Wendy when the scene ends and Anna, Kristoff, and Olaf are chased away by Marshmallow.

“Soon. She sent me a text earlier saying she’s on the way.” something clatters in the kitchen. “Seulgi, leave some food for Joohyun-unnie!”

“I’m not eating anything!” Seulgi denies, though she sounds suspiciously like is full.

“Did the four of you meet in this place?” Yerim asks.

“Yup. Ten years ago. Way back in college.” Joy answers. She’s tossing gummy bears into the air and trying to catch it with . It bounces off her face and litters the couch, most of the time.

“What’s a college?”

“It’s a school for big girls and boys.” Wendy answers.

“Will I attend one too?”

“The real question is: will you manage to get into one?” Joy quips. Wendy picks up a fallen gummy bear on the couch and tosses it at her face. It sails straight into her waiting mouth.

Yerim pays attention to the film again. It’s the scene with the trolls. She glances at the clock. She doesn’t know how to read it yet, but she can tell it’s already late. She’s already sleepy.

“When’s mommy coming?” she asks again, impatient.

“She should be here soon.” Wendy answers. “Yerim-ah.”

“Hm?”

“Let’s make a deal.” Wendy shifts, making Yerim look at her. “Until Sunday, you’re stuck with me. If you need or want anything, talk to me, okay? We’re going to let mommy rest for a while. Her work wears her out and this is going to be the break she needs. Do you understand?”

Yerim nods. She doesn’t mind being stuck with Wendy. “Okay.”

The doorbell rings then. Wendy goes to open the door with Yerim in her arms. Her mother is standing outside, hands full with pizza and drinks.

“Mommy!” Yerim wriggles in Wendy’s arms, wanting to go to her mother. Wendy gets the hint. She takes the food from Joohyun and exchanges it with Yerim who hugs her and inhales her familiar scent of lavender and that hanging Christmas tree in her car.

“Thanks,” Yerim hears her mutter to Wendy who replies with a thumbs-up before heading to the kitchen. “Hello, honey, I missed you too.'' She kisses Yerim’s temple. “How did your day go?”

“Mom, you’ll never believe it. Mr. Woo’s stamp–”

“Joohyun-unnie!” Joy hollers as soon as they step into the living room. Yerim watches in horror as the giant runs up to them and is briefly reminded of that anime called ‘Attack on Titan’ as she jumps and engulfs them in a big hug, squishing Yerim in the middle.

Her mother yells complaints and protests but Joy’s hold is tight. At the corner of her eyes, Yerim spots Seulgi and Wendy emerging from the kitchen.

“Joohyun-unnie!” Seulgi yells like a battle cry, flinging herself to join the hug.

After that, Yerim’s just dizzy. They’re spinning and the women’s perfumes flooded Yerim’s nostrils. After this, she wagers she’ll be temporarily losing her sense of smell. At some point, Wendy who’s been an innocent bystander somehow gets into the hug tornado.

Yerim laughs. Something about four grown women being silly is funny. Either that or their perfumes are making her high. It’s fun. She feels like she’s on a roller coaster ride, though she’s never been on one. Stupid height requirements.

She’s at the peak of her ecstasy when they stop, dropping dead tired on the floor and heavily breathing.

“That.” Joohyun breathes out. “Let’s not do that again.”

“Agreed.” Wendy wheezes.

“You guys are a bunch of seven year-olds.”

Yerim doesn’t understand why her mother said that as if being a seven year-old is an insult. She thinks seven year-olds are the coolest people next to those who own the complete collection of barbie. She can’t say the same to those who own a Ken though.

Gosh, she can’t wait to turn seven.

They put a makeshift dinner table in the living room as soon as they regain their composure. There’s chicken, her mother’s favorite spicy rice cakes, grilled meat, kimchi stew, japchae, and a whole arsenal of side dishes.

“Did your aunt cook these?” Joohyun asks Seulgi. She’s holding chopsticks in one hand and scrolling through her phone on the other.

“Yeah. I told her about this get together and she gladly gave me all these.” Seulgi answers, mouth full and Yerim is horrified.

“You’re not supposed to talk with your mouth full.” she chides.

Seulgi swallows before replying. “Right. Sorry.”

They resume their talk, something about Seulgi’s new celebrity chef client. Yerim focuses on her food. She already ate but one can never have enough of eating.

“Your mom’s on the phone again.” Wendy suddenly whispers to her. “You think that’s appropriate on the dining table?”

“Why don’t you tell her yourself?” she fires back.

Wendy shakes her head. “You have a higher chance of survival.”

Yerim rolls her eyes–a useful skill she learned recently. They’re cowards, they all are. She nudges her mother. “Mom, House Act number 4, no work allowed on the dining table, remember?”

Joohyun looks at her then at Wendy who just quietly put a piece of meat on Joohyun’s bowl before sighing. “Yeah, alright. Sorry about that.” she gives Wendy a grateful smile before eating said meat and putting away her phone.

Yerim tries to watch the film on the television but she quickly loses interest. Everything not animated is immediately boring in her book so she tunes back to the conversation on the table.

“Man, those were the good old days, right?” Joy says, munching on pizza. “We were so young!”

“You were a baby.” Seulgi agrees.

Yerim tries to picture a baby Joy and grimaces. Wendy notices and immediately asks what’s wrong. Yerim shakes her head and asks for a glass of water. While the woman’s back is on her, she quickly sneaks a gummy bear from her pocket to .

“How did you all meet?” she asks, curious.

The four of them exchange looks, silently deciding who’s going to tell the story. Joy sits forward. A volunteer. “Well...it all started like this.”