(Eun pokes his head into the bedroom through the door and makes eye contact with Soondeok)

‘Deok ah.’

(Eun whispers which gained Soondeok’s attention. She was feeding young Ho and has shut her eyes to enjoy a few moments of peace.)

‘What is it?’

(Soondeok mouths the words in fear of waking her precious child. Eun jerks his head, motioning for her to come out after putting Ho back into his cradle.)

‘I’ll be waiting for you outside, honey.’

(Eun whispers again softly before shutting the door and tiptoeing back to the kitchen, continuing his quest – the quest of preparing breakfast. After a couple more minutes, Soondeok finally comes out of the room.)

‘Oppa, what’s the matter? Is there something you want to say to me?’

(The tired mother asks as she sits on the dining table just outside the room. The sun is up and the sunlight has filled the entire cabin in the most heart-warming manner. Birds outside busily building their nests as they welcome spring with their newly found mates.)

‘Ta da!’

(Eun suddenly pops out from the kitchen carrying a tray of food and gracefully places it in front of his wife on the table.)

‘What on earth is this, Oppa?’

‘Why it’s our breakfast of course! Today’s our special day!’

‘Our special day? I don’t recall…sorry but I have become quite forgetful ever since Ho was born…’

(Eun gives Soondeok a soft kiss on the cheek)

‘Darling, today marks Ho’s first month on earth! Which also means, it’s been one month since we became parents~ You’ve been going through a lot of hardship this month that I reckoned you needed something special to make you happy~’

(Soondeok does not hide her smile, in fact, she made sure she lets Eun know just how much she appreciates his effort in trying to make her feel great)

‘Awwww, Oppa~ How nice of you~ I’m super touched~’

‘You deserve all this, Deok ah. And don’t cry, today’s a great day, a happy day, so don’t cry, okay?’

‘Worry not, Oppa, I won’t cry today~ Now, let’s eat, I’m starving! Look at all this! Did you prepare everything here?!’

‘Well…’

(Eun looks at his toes)

‘Well…Deok ah…I DID prepare SOMETHING here. I mean, I did make the egg the way you like it, sunny side up~ The yoke’s still jiggly~’

(The happy wife gives Eun’s hand a squeeze)

‘It’s the effort that counts, Oppa, thank you for preparing this for me~ And also thank Mrs. Gu for me, I’ve enjoyed every single dish from her.’

‘I will. But you can say that to her yourself tonight. We’re having dinner together tonight, remember? To celebrate Ho’s first month.’

‘Oh right, I forgot all about it. Here Oppa, try this radish, it goes so well with rice. By the way, Oppa, should we prepare something too for tonight? We can’t possibly let the Gu’s prepare everything for us. They’ve given us so much already.’

(Deep in thought, Eun suggests while munching on his breakfast)

‘You know what? Maybe I can go into town and buy some snack back, you know, some snacks we can have after the meal. Maybe sweets that will go well with tea. Speaking of tea, here Deok ah, try this. This tea smells refreshing, doesn’t it?’

‘Mmmm~ It is! Where did you get it?’

‘I met a tea merchant during my trip and he sold tea from all over the world! This one is jasmine tea. Oh, I’ve also bought some red tea from the far west!’

‘Red tea? That sounds interesting! I’d love to try some tomorrow.’

‘Sure! I heard that people in the west will even put honey into their tea. Sounds odd doesn’t it? But if they do it that way I suppose they have their reason. Ah, and guess what? They’ll even put milk into their tea!’

‘Milk into tea? What a waste! Milk is so expensive!’

‘Maybe they have more milk there so it’s less expensive for them? I don’t know. Oh, did you know that you can make tofu with milk?’

‘Tofu with milk?’

‘I heard from captain that the Persians love to turn their milk into solid then they eat it with bread and such. It’s sour though. He mentioned the name of it but I can’t recall but he described it as “tofu made from milk”.’

‘How interesting! Oppa tell me more, I love hearing stories from you~’

‘I will, after you’ve finished your breakfast. You’ve lost a great deal of weight this month I’m worried about you. You need to eat and be healthy enough to take care of our baby Ho, no?’

‘You’re right. It’s a good thing Ho wakes up less often at night now…but aren’t you amazed, Oppa? Just within this one month, our son has grown almost twice the size since he was born!’

‘Yes indeed, he’s such a tiny little fella when he was born, could almost fit his entire body in my hands.’

‘Sometimes, Oppa, I wonder what kind of man he’ll grow up to be…and then…and then I’ll being to be concerned…’

‘About what?’

‘He won’t be a baby forever, Oppa, he’ll grow up and learn…and one day, sooner or later, he’ll ask us about our family. What if one day he asks us about our parents? Or how we met? Or where we come from? And if we lie to him…well…the truth will be out eventually…but if we tell him the truth, can we trust that he won’t blab it to someone else?’

‘I see what you mean. Well, Deok ah, I’m sure we’ll figure out the solution when he reaches that stage. Right now we should just focus on helping him grow into a healthy boy. One with a kind heart.’

‘And schooling…should we send him to school or should I teach him? If I teach him…he’ll miss out on making friends with the other kids in town. But if I send him to school…we’ll have to pay for it and the children may not welcome him…’

‘Aigoo Deok ah.’

(Eun picks up a piece of fish with his chopsticks and put it into Soondeok’s mouth)

‘If you worry about ALL these now, you’ll have to carry that heavy burden for the next 10-20 years! Take it easy. We’ll jump over the hurdle when we see one. You have every right to be concerned about these matters but don’t let that stop you from enjoying the now. In fact, you should begin to worry about your husband instead of your son.’

‘What’s wrong? Is there any trouble you’ve been keeping from me? You sick, honey?’

‘I am, actually…’

‘Dear me! You should’ve told me!’

(Soondeok quickly walks around the table to go and inspect her dear husband seated on the opposite side.)

‘You have a fever? No, no fever. A bad cough? A cold? Runny nose? Headache? What is it?’

(Eun pulls Soondeok down so she’s sitting on his lap)

‘Deok ah, look into my eyes.’

‘Your eyes! What’s wrong with them? Did you get something in your eyes?’

‘No darling, nothing’s wrong with my eyes. Nothing’s wrong with me. I just…needed a hug from you.’

(The whinny husband buries his face into Soondeok’s embrace, only then did Soondeok realize what he meant. Ever since Ho was born, they barely had time for each other. Moments like this, is getting more and more rare. Eun has done much for her and yet right now there seems to be nothing that she can do for him.)

‘Oppa, thank you too. Thank you for taking care of me when I needed you most. And I know I haven’t been paying much attention to you, but I’ll spend more time with you from now on, I promise.’

‘Darling don’t say that. I’m not upset about that, I’m just…trying to remember what our lives were like before we became parents. I miss hearing your sweet words, your touch, your gentle kisses…I miss moments like this, moments that are-’

(Suddenly Ho’s cry fills the room. Eun sighs and finishes his sentence.)

‘Uninterrupted…well, you should go in and see what our little prince wants. I’ll wash the dishes.’

(Soondeok kisses Eun on the forehead then said.)

‘No, Oppa, you go in and take care of Ho. I doubt he’s hungry because I just fed him. Spend some time with your son, I’ll do the dishes.’

‘No no no, I can’t make you wash the dishes. The water’s still too cold.’

‘Do as I say, darling. Ho probably wants to play with his papa too. Besides, washing the dishes helps me clear my mind of a few things.’

‘If you insist. Ho-yah~ Papa’s coming! Who’s the good boy? Here’s my handsome boy! Papa’s here, did you make a poo poo? Awww, don’t worry, let papa clean it up for you. Let me take away this stinky napkin, you don’t like stinky napkins do you? No you don’t~ Papa hate stinky napkins too~ Yes, papa’s smiling because you’re too~ You’ve got a pair of beautiful eyes, my boy~ Ho-yah, are you trying to talk? What’s that you’re saying? Yes, papa can see that you’re trying~ Keep practicing son, soon your babbles will become words and words will become sentences and then you’ll be quite a chatter box, won’t you? Yes, you will, just like your papa~ Here, napkin changed! You’re feeling much better now aren’t you? What say we have some tummy time? See if you can crawl already. Oops~ Your head’s still too heavy right? Don’t worry little fella, soon you’ll be able to lift your head up. Enough tummy time, let’s take you out into the garden, the weather’s superb today~ Honey! I’m taking Ho to the garden! Yes don’t worry he’s warm enough. Ho-yah, just got permission from your mama to go out~ Let’s see if the flowers have started to bloom in the garden. Aigoo look at your arms swinging about! You’re excited, aren’t you? Here let me hold you like this so you can see the front. Look, a butterfly~’

(Meanwhile Soondeok’s gazing out the kitchen window as she’s washing dishes, her grin so big it’s reaching both her ears and this sudden gush of joy and happiness fills her heart.)

‘This is too good to be true, like a dream…a very good dream. Even if this is a dream, let it be, but let me enjoy this dream a while longer, just a while longer.’

--------------------------------------

Eun’s diary

It’s been one month! One full month! A full month since Ho became part of our family. We’re still getting used to having a new life between my wife and I but man, that entire journey’s really magical. I’ll head back now but I’ve bought some nice rice cakes and honey biscuits for our dinner tonight, hope everyone will like it, especially my wife. Old Gu is selling eggs in town today so I’ll probably go home with him, help him out a bit. The cart is quite heavy and the good old donkey is always having a hard time pulling it up the hill. Captain said that a new ship will be coming in with goods soon, another busy busy time for me at work. Luckily my wife now has no trouble handling the household by herself now though I’ll always make sure she have plenty of time to rest. Anyway, got to go!

--------------------------------------

(After dinner, while Mrs. Gu and Soondeok’s chatting away in the kitchen, Old Gu and Eun washed the dishes outside by the well.)

‘Well, that’s about it. Thank you Hyun-ah for helping me with the dishes.’

‘It’s no trouble at all, Old Gu. Thank you for the lovely dinner tonight. It has been a tiring month for all of us.’

‘Being a father is not easy.’

‘Indeed.’

(A long silence)

‘Old Gu, is there something on your mind?’

‘It’s nothing…’

‘Well, if there’s anyway I can be of help…’

‘Actually…’

(Old Gu lets out a deep sigh)

‘Actually, Hyun-ah, is there a way for you to…ummm…find my son? My oldest son who lives in Goryeo now.’

(Eun swallows uneasily but then nods)

‘I can try, but why?’

(Old Gu shrugs his shoulders)

‘Nothing serious…it’s just that as a father I can’t keep myself from worrying about him. He’s a man with stubborn dreams and I heard that the new king of Goryeo’s quite…umm…heartless. I’m concerned that if my son, being a carpenter, happens to work for him…what would happen.’

‘Well I did hear that the new king is making a new palace somewhere…’

(Eun said softly. The sudden thought of his hyung Wangyo have given him shivers throughout.)

‘Don’t worry Old Gu! I’ll help you look into it. I’m sure my boss knows a way to help you find your son and get some news on what he’s up to.’

(Old Gu pats Eun on the shoulder)

‘Thank you lad. I would really appreciate it…and also, please don’t let my wife know…or she’ll chase after you every single day like bees around their hives asking you if you have any news to give.’

--------------------------------------

(That night after Ho has been put to bed, Eun and Soondeok sat on their porch to gaze at the moon while enjoying sips of tea)

‘Deok ah.’

‘Yes Oppa?’

‘You ever wonder how everyone’s doing back home?’

(Silence)

‘Sometimes…sometimes I wonder how my father’s doing…but since you didn’t bring any bad news I suppose it’s good news. Why ask?’

‘Old Gu wants to know how his son’s doing…I heard that Yo hyung is constructing a new palace in Goryeo…I’m indeed worried about him. You and I both know what kind of person hyung-nim is.’

‘And Haesoo? You worried about her?’

‘Now why on earth would you mention HER? Deok ah, have you forgotten the dire consequence of uttering that name?’

(Eun quickly straightens his back while giving Soondeok a ‘stern’ look)

‘Stop fooling around, Oppa, I’m asking because I too am concerned about her safety. She did help us hide, remember? And…she’s also a bold one…Who knows what the king will do to her.’

‘So hyung-nim will protect her. The king won’t harm her if he wants to keep So hyung-nim under his control…’

(Eun brings Soondeok’s hand to his face, warming them with his cheeks)

‘Your hands are so cold, Deok ah…let’s head back inside.’

‘Remember that time when we were in the teahouse and you said we should head back inside or the cold would kill us…how naïve we were back then…’

‘You said it as if it happened 10 years ago, Deok ah.’

‘Well it may as well be 10 years ago…lots have changed. We now have Ho, and…we don’t become as active at night as before.’

‘Oooh~ Now that you mentioned it.’

(Eun picks Soondeok up and marches inside their house and heads straight for the stairs)

‘Oppa, what on earth are you doing? You can’t walk up the stairs carrying me, you’ll break your back!’

‘Will not! These muscles are not here for decoration, wife. I worked hard to make them grow so I can so this to you one day. And guess what? Today’s that day.’

‘Oppa…my tummy’s still…ugly…’

(Eun scoffs)

‘Like that’ll matter to me. You can be 60 years old with wrinkly skin all over your body and I’ll still find you attractive, my dear wife.’

‘And after pushing Ho through…I may not be…umm…as tight down there.’

‘Darling, it concerns me not one little bit. But, if you really don’t feel like it, we’ll just go to bed after a few kisses. You decide, my queen~’

‘How about 100 kisses?’

‘100 kisses it is! Oh, you want me to do push ups while we’re at it?’

(Soondeok nods with approval so Eun quickly gets into his push up position and starts kissing Soondeok every time he lowers his body.)

‘One~ Muah~ Two~ Muah~ Three~ Muah~~~’