"MEOW!" Seo Hyeon said, holding her hands up to her face like a kitten's paws and twitching her nose. Looking down at her, Yeong Hwa felt herself blushing from the cuteness and quickly mussed Seo Hyeon's hair in order to try and cover it up. Crying out in protest, Seo Hyeon dodged away from Yeong Hwa's attack and hid behind Myung Soo's legs. As she poked her head out from behind them she stuck her tongue out at Yeong Hwa, then disappeared once more to hide and adjust the cat-ear headband she was wearing.

Giggling, Yeong Hwa clasped her hands behind her back and glanced around at the people who were waiting in line with them. Then her eyes trailed up to the Gyro Drop, which had just reached the peak of its ascension. Tightening her hands a bit more, Yeong Hwa watched as the ride suddenly dropped and, in a short time of three seconds, reached the bottom. As people staggered off the ride, some still screaming or whimpering as the ride caught up to them, Yeong Hwa felt her heart rate increase.

Beside her, Myung Soo felt his heart rate drop until he was positive he had died. This kind of ride was most definitely not his thing. Swallowing nervously he reached down and took Seo Hyeon's hand, more for his own comfort than for his little sister's. Seo Hyeon didn't seem to mind, though, and happily twined her fingers together with Myung Soo's as she waited patiently in line behind him. She already knew that her and Yoogeun weren't going to be able to go on the ride, so she was going to give all her support to Myung Soo while she could.

"Can I pweeaaaaaase go on the Gy... Gywo Dwop?" Yoogeun pleaded, hesitating slightly at the more difficult word, as he fell to his knees and clasped Yeong Hwa's pants tightly in his little fists. Sighing, Yeong Hwa placed her hands on her hips and bent her waist ninety degrees so that she could look down at Yoogeun, who was now crawling onto her leg. "Pwease? Pwease? Pwease? Pw-" he stopped mid 'pwease' when he caught the look Yeong Hwa was giving him. 

Yoogeun remained strong, though, and sat defiantly on her foot as the line began moving forward. Not wanting to keep the people behind her waiting, Yeong Hwa swung her leg up into the air and then brought it down gently so as not to hurt Yoogeun. With this awkward gait, Yeong Hwa managed to proceed to the front of the line despite the laughing growth that had appeared on her leg. That was as far as she could go, though, as the man taking tickets didn't seem ready to let Yoogeun ride Yeong Hwa's leg while she took the Gyro Drop.

Holding up a finger to the ticketeer to ask for a quick second, Yeong Hwa crouched as best she could in order to try and talk with Yoogeun. "Yoogeun, can noona ride this really fast?" she gently asked while subtly trying to remove Yoogeun's arms from around her leg. He wasn't easily deceived, though, and tightened his grip so much that Yeong Hwa was sure he would cut off the circulation to her foot.

"Take me with you!" Yoogeun demanded, pouting at Yeong Hwa as he tried to drum up some tears. Frowning, Yeong Hwa barely clapped her palm against the back of his head. "PWEASE!" he really wasn't about to give up on riding the Gyro Drop. At least not until Yeong Hwa came up with a persuasive way of removing him that was short of surgically amputating the little growth.

Glancing around for a source of inspiration, Yeong Hwa's eyes landed on a giant jelly bean sign that sat a top one of Lotte World's many shops. Slowly her thoughts drifted back to when she first met the twins and was able to bribe them into behaving with candy. Yoogeun had been the easiest of the two, also. She now had a persuasive way of removing him.

Forcing her self-satisfied smirk to remain off her face, Yeong Hwa sighed and straightened up as though she were giving up on removing Yoogeun. Throwing her arms up in the air, she dramatically announced: "I guess Yoogeun won't get any candy, then. And those jelly beans looked so good, too." Sighing heavily, Yeong Hwa dropped her arms to her side and frowned regretfully at Myung Soo, who was waiting patiently for her and Yoogeun's little show to get over with. Seeing no support coming from him, Yeong Hwa half-heartedly turned towards the crowd of people standing behind her.

"Such a pity. I've heard the candy is really tasty," one teenage boy agreed, winking at Yeong Hwa when he caught her eye. Not seeing any harm in it, Yeong Hwa winked back before glancing down at Yoogeun to see if he was buying it. Although he had seemed skeptic about Yeong Hwa's speech, the sudden input of a total stranger was beginning to warm Yoogeun up. Looking down at the ground, Yoogeun took a moment to seriously think about it before crawling off Yeong Hwa's leg and joining Seo Hyeon, who had been patiently waiting on the side lines.

"Two bags," he told Yeong Hwa, holding up three fingers. Smiling brightly, Yeong Hwa nodded in agreement before hurrying over to join Myung Soo at the Gyro Drop. "You promised!" Yoogeun called after her, holding up his pinky and shaking it in the air as a reminder. Holding up her own pinky, Yeong Hwa gave it a quick shake before pulling the safety harness over her. As the mechanism clicked into place, Yeong Hwa felt her heart begin pounding once more as excitement took over.

Myung Soo, on the other hand, had turned extremely pale and was currently muttering fervently to himself. Shaking her head at the fuss Myung Soo was making, Yeong Hwa reached over and lightly tapped her knuckles against his arm in a reassuring manner. He didn't even seem to notice, though, and as the ride began climbing upwards his voice got louder until everyone going up with them could hear his frantic chanting. Covering her face out of embarrassment, Yeong Hwa pretended not to know him as a few of their fellow riders turned to see where all the noise was coming from.

"Oppa fighting!" Seo Hyeon cheered, doing a short dance along with it. Beside her, Yoogeun had begun to drool as candy fantasies took hold of his brain.

"Yeah, Oppa. Get a grip on yourself," Yeong Hwa teased, nudging Myung Soo with her elbow. Nodding stiffly, Myung Soo swallowed hard and ignored the sinking feeling in his stomach as he looked down at the increasing distance between his legs and the ground. If this thing broke, both he and Yeong Hwa would be dead. Splatted on the ground and turned into soupy human pancakes.

As Myung Soo showed no signs of improving, Yeong Hwa decided to just ignore him and focus on the ride. Looking down, she could see the twins craning their necks back in order to watch as their older counterparts ascended up into the skies. Judging by how small the two were, Yeong Hwa could assume that they had already almost reached the of the ride. Gripping the safety harness even tighter, Yeong Hwa prepared for the drop of a life time. Beside her, Myung Soo had gone from pale to green.

"Myung Soo, do not hurl. Okay?" Yeong Hwa told him, keeping her head facing straight ahead as the ride came to a stop. In a few seconds they would begin the drop. "Okay? Myung Soo?" she asked, turning her head just slightly enough to make sure Myung Soo hadn't passed out or anything. Nodding stiffly, Myung Soo's hands loosely grabbed the safety harness as all the life left him.

Sighing heavily, and making sure Myung Soo heard her, Yeong Hwa reached over and easily took Myung Soo's hand into hers. "Chicken. Need me to hold your hand?" she teased, already about to let go of his hand as the downward momentum began. Myung Soo had also felt the sudden drop beginning, though, and had cut off the circulation to Yeong Hwa's fingers as he squeezed her hand. Blushing at how tightly he was holding her, Yeong Hwa felt time slow as they rocketed downwards.

What should have taken three seconds felt like an eternity, and by the time they reached the bottom Yeong Hwa was positive she had lived a few life times already. When the ride settled and everyone began getting off, Myung Soo pried his sweaty fingers away from Yeong Hwa's hand and practically threw himself away from the Gyro Drop. Rolling her eyes and trying to play off the situation coolly, Yeong Hwa made a much more graceful exit from the Gyro Drop and followed Myung Soo as he desperately removed himself from the ride's proximity.

"You alright? The garbage cans are over there if you need to... you know," Yeong Hwa told Myung Soo, who had doubled over and was breathing heavily while a cold sweat dripped down his face. This seemed like a little... okay, a lot extreme of a reaction to something as simple as the Gyro Drop, but Yeong Hwa supposed not everyone liked thrill rides. "Um, or the bathrooms should be around here somewhere," she added, slowly turning 360 degrees to try and spot a bathroom for Myung Soo to release his breakfast in.

"I'll be fine," Myung Soo assured her hoarsely as he staggered over to a wooden bench and flopped onto it. Seo Hyeon, who had dragged Yoogeun over to join the older kids, climbed up beside him and rested her head on his thigh. Sticking her tongue out as Yeong Hwa, Seo Hyeon snuggled up against Myung Soo and closed her eyes, making cute little snoring noises and pretending to sleep.

"I will not be jealous of a five year old," Yeong Hwa thought, unable to keep from remembering the many times she had used Myung Soo as her personal pillow. Actually, when she thought about it, her and Myung Soo were a lot closer than most official couples. They had kissed, held hands, and even slept together- in a totally non-ual way. It would be easy for any outsider to mistake them for a couple... which had actually happened on occasion. She wouldn't exactly consider herself to be an outsider, though.

"Ugh, what am I thinking?!  This is ridiculous. Ri-dic-u-lous! Myung Soo and I are not a couple!" Yeong Hwa thought, covering her face with her hands and letting out a long sigh.

Watching this dramatic display, Myung Soo couldn't help but feel it was directed at him. He had been so stupid for holding her hand like that while they were on the Gyro Drop! Of course at the time he hadn't really been trying to make a move on her. He was just genuinely scared of that crazy ride... but still! He shouldn't have done it. Now Yeong Hwa was upset with him, and unless he apologized soon the fists would probably start flying and their last big trip together would be totally ruined.

"Yeong Hwa-"

"Yes?!" She squeaked, dropping her hands to her side within a second and standing stiffly at attention.

"Okay..." Myung Soo mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck and trying to get rid of the cold sweat that had puddled there. "Listen, about the Gyro Drop... I'm sorry about, you know. Holding your hand and everything," he mumbled awkwardly, his eyes traveling everywhere but to Yeong Hwa's pair of orbs.

Which for Yeong Hwa was a good thing, because it gave her a few seconds to hide the crushing feeling of rejection that had suddenly dragged her heart down. She quickly composed herself, though, and was able to give Myung Soo a clear, well-thought out answer. "Don't worry about it. It's not like this is the first time you've done something like this," Yeong Hwa told him, waving her hand in the air as though she were brushing away Myung Soo's concerns. "Now, where should we head to next?" she asked, switching the subject as she turned to Yoogeun.

"Can-dy," he annunciated, pointing towards the candy shop. "Twoooo baaaags," he continued, slowly speaking so as to make sure Yeong Hwa was listening.

Rolling her eyes, Yeong Hwa reached down and mussed up Yoogeun's hair: "Okay, okay. Twoooo baaaags of can-dy," she mimicked, quickly pulling her hand away as Yoogeun began swatting at it. "Do you want anything Seo Hyeon?"

"Lollipops," the little girl replied primly, sitting up on the seat and leaning against Myung Soo. "Green and red."

"M'kay... you mind watching Seo Hyeon while I go get us some tasty sweets?" Yeong Hwa asked Myung Soo, making a mental note of Seo Hyeon's order. "Myung Soo?" she repeated when he showed no signs of answering. He seemed totally distracted as he stared down at his feet and nervously played with his hands, as though he were having to ride the Gyro Drop all over again. "Seo Hyeon, can you watch Myung Soo for me?" Yeong Hwa caved in, turning to the little girl and winking at her.

"Yup!" Seo Hyeon exclaimed, holding out two thumbs up as she started swinging her legs beneath the bench. "Garbage can, bathroom," Seo Hyeon added, pointing to each thing respectively.

"Well you're all prepared, then," Yeong Hwa chuckled as she reached down and took Yoogeun's hand. Rather than her leading him to the candy shop, though, Yoogeun began pulling Yeong Hwa along with all his might. It was like the candy shop might vanish into thin air if they didn't hurry and reach it.

After watching Yoogeun lead Yeong Hwa away, Seo Hyeon settled herself comfortably onto the bench beside Myung Soo and played with a bottle cap she had found abandoned on the ground. Carefully tossing it from one hand to the other, Seo Hyeon began humming along to one of the skipping songs her friends taught her. Soon, Seo Hyeon was spinning the bottle cap up into the air and then catching it in various clever ways, displaying an impressive amount of hand-eye coordination for a five year old.

After a particularly good catch, Seo Hyeon turned towards Myung Soo expectantly and waited for her praise. Instead, she could barely hear Myung Soo as he muttered nervously to himself. Sighing and deflating instantly, Seo Hyeon tossed the bottle cap away and watched it skid along the ground. There wasn't much point to being good at something if nobody ever praised you or said good job.

"She still hasn't forgiven me for all those other times?! How am I supposed to confess to her if Yeong Hwa is angry with me?" Myung Soo muttered, slowly sinking lower and lower onto the bench until someone could mistake him to be the same size as Seo Hyeon. "It's not like it's the first time you've done something like this," the way she had said that... Myung Soo couldn't even imagine how to begin apologizing for everything he had put her through. She was probably the most upset about the two kisses he had stolen from her... and what if that first one had been her first kiss?! Girls were extremely sentimental about their first kiss, and for him to have taken it like that...

But how could he apologize for something that he wasn't sorry about?! Of course he didn't feel bad about having kissed her because that's what guys do when they like a girl! Of course they normally ask for permission first, or ask the girl out or something, but the principle was the same! Myung Soo had feelings for Yeong Hwa, therefore he kissed her. It was as simple as that!

Would Yeong Hwa understand, though? If he told her those exact words, or possibly put them into simpler terms, would she understand and forgive him? Would she reciprocate his feelings? Or would he walk out of Lotte world with a black eye and/or on a stretcher? Or possibly a coffin...

"Confessing to a girl should not be this scary," Myung Soo complained as he glanced over at Seo Hyeon, who was amusing herself by carefully pulling the sequins off her dress and stacking them on her knees. Reaching over, he gently took both her hands and pulled them away from her dress so that she couldn't ruin it any further.

"Are you alright?" Seo Hyeon asked, glad to have finally gotten her brother's attention. She liked this dress and was sad about having damaged it, but she was more sad when Myung Soo ignored her. "You seem sad," Seo Hyeon continued pressuring when Myung Soo tried to ignore her question. Turning away from Seo Hyeon, Myung Soo tried his best to cover his face so that he wouldn't have to answer her question. Pouting, Seo Hyeon climbed onto Myung Soo's lap and cupped his cheeks in her hands, forcing him to look at her. "OPPA!" she snapped, doing her best to mimic Yeong Hwa's angry voice.

"Yeah?" Myung Soo sighed, reaching up to try and pry Seo Hyeon's hands from his cheeks.

"Are. You. Alright?" Seo Hyeon demanded, leaning forward so that her forehead was pressed against Myung Soo's. He didn't know if this was some new form of interrogation or not, but it wasn't very effective. Rather than being intimidated, Myung Soo found himself wanting to pinch Seo Hyeon's cheeks because of how cute she looked, even if her eyes had melded together and turned her into a cyclops.

Leaning his face away from Seo Hyeon's, Myung Soo rested one hand on her forehead to keep her from pursuing him with her new interrogation technique. "You got me, Seo Hyeon. Oppa is... he's a little sad. And worried," Myung Soo admitted, trying not to tell Seo Hyeon too much so as not to worry her. Oh, and so the little talker didn't accidentally divulge anything to Yeong Hwa when she got back.

"Why?" Seo Hyeon asked innocently, making herself comfortable on Myung Soo's lap as she did so.

"Because..." Myung Soo glanced over his shoulder to make sure Yeong Hwa wasn't coming up behind him, "because of... a girl," he admitted, his voice going down to a whisper.

"Unnie?"

"Which unnie?" Myung Soo asked, not wanting to say anything that he shouldn't.

"Babysitter unnie," Seo Hyeon clarified, pointing over his shoulder. Panicking at the thought of Yeong Hwa standing right behind him, Myung Soo jerked around to see what Seo Hyeon was pointing at. Turns out it was just the candy shop, where 'babysitter unnie' and her little companion were currently living a candy dream.

Sighing with relief, Myung Soo turned back to Seo Hyeon. She seemed suspicious of him, especially after her obviously began panicking. "N-no. Not Yeong Hwa," he lied, his voice so awkward that even the five year old could tell that he was lying. Shaking her head slightly, Seo Hyeon crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes sternly at Myung Soo.

"Lying is bad," she scolded him, leaning forward so that their foreheads were once more pressed together.

"I'm not lying," Myung Soo replied defensively, averting his eyes from Seo Hyeon's. For a five year old, they were surprisingly knowledgeable. He felt more like he was talking to some relationship counselor than his little sister.

Sighing, Seo Hyeon gave up on trying to get her brother to be better and sat back once more. "Do you love her? Do you love unnie?" She asked, continuing on with the subject. She wasn't sure why she was asking him this, but it felt like the right thing to do in order to help Myung Soo be happy again. He had been sad a lot lately, especially when the babysitter unnie was around.

"I- yes, I know lying is bad," Myung Soo interrupted himself when Seo Hyeon opened to scold him once more. Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair and glanced over his shoulder once more to make sure Yeong Hwa wasn't anywhere within ear shot. "Yes. I do love her. A lot," he admitted, none too easily.

"Does she love you?" Seo Hyeon continued, already pretty sure she knew the answer.

"No. And that's why I'm sad," Myung Soo admitted, shrugging his shoulders helplessly.

"No? Big kids really are stupid sometimes," Seo Hyeon thought, unable to keep her puzzlement off her face. Catching this look, Myung Soo smiled softly and gently pinched Seo Hyeon's cheeks. Pouting, she crawled off his lap and instead sat beside him, rubbing at her cheeks as she did so.

"Not everybody is always going to love you back. Sometimes you're just not meant to be with that person, however much you want to think otherwise," Myung Soo explained to Seo Hyeon, figuring that even if she didn't understand it couldn't hurt to teach her the lesson. If he could prevent her, and Yoogeun, from having to go through this when they got old enough to fall in love then he would feel like a lucky man. He would hate to see either of them hurting.

"Have you told her?" Seo Hyeon demanded, not about to listen to Myung Soo say that he and babysitter unnie weren't meant to be together. "If you don't tell her, then she won't know! And maybe she's scared too! Maybe she thinks you don't love her!" she loudly insisted, standing up on the bench with her hands on her hips.

"Sit down, Seo Hyeon. We don't want to disturb the other people," Myung Soo whispered, gently tugging her back down as people began to take notice of their conversation.

"Promise me you'll tell unnie," Seo Hyeon told Myung Soo, her pinky finger shooting out. "I want Oppa to be happy," she added sadly.

Touched by how concerned Seo Hyeon was for his happiness, Myung Soo wrapped one arm around her and gave her a quick hug. "Alright, Seo Hyeon. I promise," Myung Soo agreed, finding her hand and wrapping his pinky around hers. "I'll tell her, and then we'll see how things-"

"Tell who what, Myung Soo?" Yeong Hwa asked as she suddenly materialized behind the bench. Yoogeun, too, had arrived and was holding the two promised bags of candy in one hand while the other held a fistful of ers for Seo Hyeon. Jumping about a foot in the air, Myung Soo let go of Seo Hyeon as though she had suddenly turned into lava and jumped off the bench. Both Yoogeun and Yeong Hwa began laughing in unison at how badly Myung Soo had been scared, and Yeong Hwa even had to crouch down on the ground while holding onto the bench's back rest to keep from falling over completely.

"When-when did you get here?!" Myung Soo demanded, pointing an accusing finger at Yeong Hwa when she stood up and became visible once more.

Wiping a few tears from her eyes, Yeong Hwa breathed in slowly to calm herself before holding out a small bag of assorted candies to Myung Soo. "Just long enough to hear you declare you were going to tell someone something," Yeong Hwa told him, watching as Myung Soo cautiously accepted the gift from her. Smiling, she rested against the bench's backrest and played with her fingers, occasionally looking up at Myung Soo. After thirty seconds of this, he cracked.

"I'm not going to tell you who or what I was talking about," he told her matter-of-factly, popping a piece of chocolate into his mouth.

"I know. I figured it was worth a try, though," Yeong Hwa sighed, shrugging her shoulders dramatically before beginning to stroll off. "Come on, there's a fountain over here that I think you should take a few pictures of," Yeong Hwa instructed him, pointing in the direction that water could be heard at.

"Since when did I become your personal photographer?" Myung Soo complained, reaching over and taking Seo Hyeon's hand in order to make sure she didn't get lost. Yoogeun had already skipped ahead and snagged Yeong Hwa's hand, which he was currently violently swinging to the point that Myung Soo believed her arm might just possibly fly off. Yeong Hwa didn't seem to mind, though.

It really was amazing how deep her well of patience for kids was when it took her three seconds for her typical fuse to burn out. "You should go into childcare," he thought aloud, blushing a bit when he realized that Yeong Hwa had heard him. Raising her eyebrows, Yeong Hwa glanced over at him to see if she had heard what she thought she had. "Well, it's true. You're really good with kids, and if anyone tried hurting them you would be the perfect person to defend them," he insisted, flinching away slightly when Yeong Hwa's hand moved.

She just lifted it to rub the back of her neck as she began turning red at the compliments. "Do you really think so? I mean, I figured I would always take over my dad's business when I graduated university, but... I dunno. Taking care of Yoogeun and Seo Hyeon just seems more natural for me. It's really fun!" she said, grinning down at Yoogeun and Seo Hyeon. "Of course you're part of what makes it fun," she added as an afterthought, smiling at Myung Soo.

She had a beautiful smile.

"Ah... that was probably really weird," Yeong Hwa apologized while laughing nervously. Coughing into her fists, Yeong Hwa tried to think of a way to set the conversation back on course. "It-it's not like I could go into child care, though. People aren't going to entrust their kids to a crazy delinquent," she sighed, remembering where the conversation had begun.

"Delinquent?" Myung Soo asked, pretending to be totally oblivious about where she was coming from.

Rolling her eyes, Yeong Hwa nudged Myung Soo with her shoulder. "Come on, Myung Soo. My entire school life revolves around me intimidating people and being the biggest, baddest chick on campus. In other words, being the best- or I guess worst- delinquent out there," she explained sarcastically, not buying Myung Soo's innocent act for a second.

"Unnie bullies people?" Seo Hyeon asked, suddenly reminding both teenagers that an open and honest heart-to-heart was not exactly the best idea at the moment. At least if Yeong Hwa didn't want the twins to hate her.

"Well I..." Yeong Hwa hesitated as she debated on whether to lie or not. Glancing down at Yoogeun, who was also staring up at her with wide, trusting eyes, Yeong Hwa chose the only option she could. "Yes. I... I wasn't the nicest person at school," she admitted, turning her head away in shame as Seo Hyeon and Yoogeun digested this.

"But you're nice now. You play with us, and you cook for us, and you buy candy, and-" Yoogeun hesitated for a moment, but Seo Hyeon was able to quickly pick up the slack: "And you make Gaeran Tost-u, and you put us to bed, and you sing prettily, and... and you're just great!"

Myung Soo turned his face away from Yeong Hwa so that she couldn't see his smile, and so that she didn't get embarrassed about getting teary eyed as the twins compliments flowed out as naturally as though they were naming off their favorite candies. As they arrived at the fountain Myung Soo pulled out the disposable camera he had brought along and began snapping a few pictures for Yeong Hwa, letting her and the twins have a little talk about the Yeong Hwa at school and the super babysitter the twins knew her as.

"This isn't permanent, though," Myung Soo thought heavily, glancing over his shoulder at Yeong Hwa. She currently had the twins on her lap, one on each knee, and was telling them the story that had been written on the fountain's placard. "It could be, though. I just have to tell her... and I promised Seo Hyeon, too. If that isn't enough to get me going, then nothing will be," he decided as Yeong Hwa caught him watching them and began ushering the twins over towards him. Blushing, he quickly turned back to the fountain and began snapping a few hurried shots so as to appear busy.

"Thanks for inviting me along, Myung Soo," Yeong Hwa suddenly told him as she came up alongside him. In front of them, the twins were splashing each other with the fountain's water.

"What do you mean? The passes belonged to you," Myung Soo chuckled, trying to think of a way to broach the subject that he had been meaning to for who knows how long. "Remember, the whole crazy gambling thing back at the-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I got it," Yeong Hwa sighed playfully, nudging Myung Soo with her shoulder. "So can you see the pictures after you take them?" she asked, quickly switching the subject as she moved around behind Myung Soo and, standing on her tip toes, rested her chin on his shoulder so she could look at the camera's display screen. It's non-existent display screen, that is. "Ah, I guess not," she chuckled, but she didn't move away and instead remained resting against Myung Soo's shoulder.

Neither of them knew how to continue the conversation, and so as the steady stream of talking dissipated the awkwardness of their position began filling in the space left behind. Shifting awkwardly in his spot Myung Soo debated on whether or not to move, thus forcing Yeong Hwa to get off him, or to just stay there. Of course he wanted to just stay there, but if he didn't move then Yeong Hwa might think something was up. After all, didn't he usually get annoyed with her? If this time he suddenly changed-

"Yoogeun, what are you doing back th- Yoogeun!" Yeong Hwa suddenly screeched as the mischievous toddler pushed her forward, sending bother Yeong Hwa and Myung Soo tumbling into the fountain. As they fell Myung Soo could feel her grab his shoulder and turn him away from the fountain, so that he didn't land face first into the shallow water. Silently thanking her, he closed his eyes tightly and braced himself as the cold water splashed up around him and Yeong Hwa.

Spluttering, Yeong Hwa tried to get her bearings as she wiped water away from her eyes. Although the water wasn't deep it was still disorienting to receive such a sudden shock of cold. Which was why she didn't pay any mind to the strong hands that wrapped around her arms and hoisted her out of the water, or the same arms that wrapped around her shoulders and hurriedly guided her towards the bathrooms. By the time she did realized what was going on she was inside one of the family co-ed bathrooms with Myung Soo, who had already started drying her hair with a handful of paper towels.

"When did we...?" She let her question hang as Myung Soo tossed the soaked paper towels into the trash bin and went to grab more. Reaching up to her wet hair Yeong Hwa gingerly wrapped her hands around it and leaned over the sink to squeeze out the excess water. As she tugged at her hair to get rid of as much moisture as she could manage, Yeong Hwa watched as Myung Soo began working on drying out the back of her clothes.

"You should worry about getting yourself dry. You'll catch a cold more easily than me," Yeong Hwa scolded him, reaching around behind and grabbing his hands to keep him from continuing to work on her clothes.

"Says who?" Myung Soo asked, begrudgingly beginning to dry his own clothes.

"Says me," Yeong Hwa retorted, turning around to face him with her arms folded over her chest. Suddenly he realized where Seo Hyeon had gotten her scolding lessons from. Quickly imprinting a reminder to keep the two away from each other in the future, so that he didn't have a mini-Yeong Hwa running around, Myung Soo decided not to argue further with Yeong Hwa and just continued to dry himself off. Satisfied, Yeong Hwa went over to the paper towel dispenser and began pulling out some for herself.

The two worked quietly on drying themselves for the next few minutes, with Yeong Hwa only breaking the silence long enough to ask where the twins were. "Outside playing at the fountain. I figured we wouldn't be too long," Myung Soo responded. Then the silence once more filled the bathroom as they busily worked on ignoring the other one.

When she was as dry as she was going to get with a handful of paper towels, Yeong Hwa threw away the damp brown paper she had been working with and checked to see if Myung Soo was done. Although his clothes were plenty dry, his hair was still a sopping, tangled mess. Sighing heavily she grabbed another handful of paper towels and pinned Myung Soo against the counter before he could move to leave the bathroom.

"Sit," she ordered, gesturing for him to take a sink on a dry part of the bathroom counter. Rolling his eyes he slowly hoisted himself up and onto the counter, leaning forward until his face was level with Yeong Hwa's. At first she started to dry his hair for him, but after a few seconds of being forced to stare him straight in the eye she reconsidered and roughly pushed the back of Myung Soo's head down so that he was forced to stare at the floor. "This way it will be easier to dry the back," she lied, beginning to carefully work at removing the water from the back of his hair.

"It's now or never, Myung Soo. The twins aren't around to listen in, the bathroom is empty, and the atmosphere is... stifling," he thought, tugging nervously at the collar of his shirt.

Coincidentally, Yeong Hwa happened to be glancing downwards at that moment and caught a nice view of Myung Soo's bare chest. Blushing, she snapped her attention back upwards and stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her face was as red as a tomato and lit up like the of a fire fly. "Thank goodness his head is down," Yeong Hwa thought, glancing up and mouthing a quick thanks to any gods who might be watching at that moment.

"Now or never, now or never, now or- this is just getting me even more nervous! Less pep talk, more talking," Myung Soo continued thinking, feeling his heart beat increase as his mouth opened to speak. "Yeong Hwa... um... Yeong Hwa... um..." his brain suddenly stuck on repeat as he continued mumbling her name.

Pausing in her careful drying of Myung Soo's hair, Yeong Hwa placed her hands on her hips and frowned at him. "Yes... um... yes... um?" she mimicked playfully, using the back of her knuckles to rap on Myung Soo's head.

"I get it," he laughed nervously, clasping his hands behind his neck and staring straight down at the floor. "Listen, Yeong Hwa-"

"Don't wear it out, Myung Soo. That name has got to last me for a long time," Yeong Hwa interrupted, going back to drying off his hair.

"Can I just talk? Please?" he pleaded, already feeling his confidence beginning to diminish.

"Sorry," she apologized.

"Yeong Hwa... we've known each other for a while now... well, I mean, we've actually been getting along for only a few months but that could still be considered a long time, right?" Myung Soo asked, glancing up at Yeong Hwa. Smiling, she nodded at Myung Soo in order to humor him. Bowing his head, Myung Soo continued: "a few months is long enough to fall for someone, right? I mean, we've only known each other for a few months and..." Myung Soo's voice trailed off once more as he lost his voice for a second.

During that second long pause, Yeong Hwa felt her heart suddenly try to leap out of her chest as hope surged upwards. "No... no way. There is no way that this a confession. Myung Soo would never... but, I mean, it really sounds like a love confession, and-"

"Yeong Hwa?" Myung Soo asked in a sudden burst of confidence, looking up to meet her eyes.

"Yes?!" She replied, a bit too eagerly. "Y-yes?" she repeated, this time with more control.

"I... I... I really... Over these past few months I've... I mean I.... you... like?" the words came out in a jumpy jumbled mess as Myung Soo began pointing anxiously between himself and Yeong Hwa. In order to prevent herself from getting by his jumpy movement, Yeong Hwa took a subtle step backwards. "I like you," he finally got out in one final breath, his whole body deflating as he covered his face with his hands and bent his head.

"He-" Yeong Hwa couldn't even finish her thought as her brain shut down entirely. open and shut several times, but no sound was able to come out as she tried to process everything that had just happened. "Kim Myung Soo just... he... is he joking?"  "Are you joking?" the words blurted out of Yeong Hwa's mouth before she could stop them.

In front of her every muscle in Myung Soo's body went stiff as the words reached his brain and were processed. Regretting what she had said, Yeong Hwa imagined clawing at the air in order to try and catch the puffs of air that had possibly just ruined her life. Opening , she tried to do damage control on her own stupid words: "What I mean to say is-"

"I'm not very good at this, am I?" Myung Soo suddenly laughed. He had lost his nerve. There was no way he could try and convince Yeong Hwa this wasn't a joke. Besides, what girl would ask that kind of a question if she liked the guy who had just confessed to her? "You're pretty good at knowing when people are lying, aren't you? Too bad, it would have been nice to be able to trick you just once." If it hadn't been obvious that Yeong Hwa didn't feel that way before, it certainly was now. Myung Soo felt like he was standing in the middle of a glass shop with all the wares falling off the shelves and shattering around him.

"You stupid ! You stupid, stupid ! Why would you say that?! WHY?! WHY?!" Yeong Hwa screamed at herself, her hands slowly rising up to her hair and beginning to tug at it. "So... you were joking?" she asked cautiously, unable to voice her thoughts. Which was probably for the best. She wasn't sure if he had been serious or not, but with the atmosphere, and how he was speaking, and... everything had just seemed so perfect.

"Yes."

Too perfect.

The two stared at each other for one long awkward moment before Myung Soo began laughing again and, slowly, Yeong Hwa joined him. She was laughing, but she felt like crying. Her stomach hurt from forcing herself to laugh so hard, but her heart hurt even more. "You stupid, stupid idiot. Why did you ask if he was joking?" Yeong Hwa thought as she forced a smile onto her face and joined Myung Soo on the counter.

"You actually had me going for a while. You're a pretty good actor," she complimented him, nudging Myung Soo with her shoulder. Somehow, the familiar gesture seemed wrong now. Feeling a little awkward, Yeong Hwa slid a few inches away from Myung Soo to put some more distance between the pair of them.

"Really? I figured you had gotten it right off the bat," Myung Soo asked, despite wanting to deny that he was joking. The damage had been done, though, and no matter how much he tried to take it back it was just not going to happen.

After a few more moments of laughing, the two slid off the counter in unison and headed towards the bathroom door. Outside the twins were waiting patiently by the fountain, with Yoogeun occasionally splashing Seo Hyeon and then pretending to not know what had happened. By the time Yeong Hwa and Myung Soo reached the twins, Seo Hyeon was prepared to throw Yoogeun into the fountain and he was hiding behind a bench.

"Oppaaaaaa!" Seo Hyeon complained, running over to Myung Soo and jumping into his arms. Surprised, Myung Soo was barely able to catch her. "Yoogeun is being mean," she whimpered, pointing to her second brother as he hid behind the bench. Sighing, Myung Soo gesture for Yoogeun to come and join them, but the little boy adamantly remained behind the bench.

Seeing that a little interference was needed, Yeong Hwa marched over to Yoogeun. Sensing the danger, the little boy crawled underneath the bench and took off around the fountain, with Yeong Hwa in hot pursuit. As the two ran around the fountain in a chase that resembled a Nascar race, Seo Hyeon watched Myung Soo with growing concern. He still seemed sad.

"Oppa? Are you alright?" Seo Hyeon asked, placing one hand on his cheek and turning Myung Soo's face so that she could look him in the eye. "You still look sad," she pointed out, pouting slightly herself.

"Oppa just heard the three worst words someone can say," Myung Soo sighed, knowing that he couldn't directly lie and say that he was fine. Not unless he wanted another counseling session from five year old Oprah Winfrey. When he noticed that Seo Hyeon didn't seem satisfied, he sat down on one of the benches with her on his lap in order to explain better. "Do you know what the three best words are?" Myung Soo asked, wrapping one arm around Seo Hyeon to keep her from falling off his lap.

"Um... uh-uh," Seo Hyeon admitted after a second's thought.

"I love you. You know what that means, right?" Seo Hyeon nodded. "Well, the three worst words are 'are you joking'." he continued explaining, but that only seemed to confuse Seo Hyeon even more.

"Why not 'I hate you'?" she asked, tilting her head cutely to the side as puzzlement knitted her eyebrows together. Chuckling, Myung Soo poked her right between the eyes in order to dispel her pouting face. Giggling, Seo Hyeon covered her face with her hands.

"I hate you is also hurtful, but... well, maybe you'll understand it when you're older," Myung Soo decided, not sure how else to explain something so complicated to a five year old. Sighing heavily, Seo Hyeon nodded and switched her attention to the Nascar race currently going on. At the moment, it seemed like Yoogeun might actually be able to remain ahead of Yeong Hwa.

"Are you joking?" Yeong Hwa's words echoed around in his head as he watched her make a sudden change in direction and begin to chase Yoogeun from the other direction. He was quick too, though, and soon the Nascar racers were going around the track in the opposite direction with no end to their race in sight.

It had almost sounded like she wanted him to say no. Like she wanted him to assure her that his confession was not a joke. Sighing, Myung Soo tilted his head back and stared up at the sky, which was visibly through Lotte World's glass roof. "Why did I ever say yes?"
 

Author's Note: So he confessed... The confession failed, but he confessed! I probably should have just had the confession succeed and they all live happily ever after but there is, like, one more thing I want to write about before then. Besides, what fun is it when the confession works right off the bat? We all love long, drawn out plots, right? Right?! ...I'm sorry. But I really want to write that one more thing... Please don't kill me?