The works of another

“Don’t you think it is too soon?” Bom asked her husband right after dinner as she moved to clean the plates.

“What is too soon?” Seunghyun asked her back and then went in front of her “Leave those plates, I’ll clean them up and… will you stop moving? You’re due any day now.”

“I know that” Bom answered and sat at the kitchen table “and don’t fuss too much about me ok? If I don’t move, I’m going to go crazy just being here at home.”

The Head Doctor sighed at his wife’s obstinacy but knew about what she was talking about – she’s an ER nurse used to action and being at home like this would indeed drive her crazy. “I’m just worried.”

“I know you are” Bom answered, watching Seunghyun turn on the dishwasher, her voice softening “I’m not used to being inactive like this that’s why I’m stubborn.”

Seunghyun smiled up at her and hugged her. “You’re always stubborn” he told Bom and kissed her forehead.

Bom hugged him as close as her baby bump would allow “You’re more stubborn than I am mister. Which leads me back to what I was asking… isn’t it too soon?”

Seunghyun raised an eyebrow “What is too soon Mrs. Choi?”

“This thing between Ji Yong and Dara that you and the guys are trying to set-up” she answered.“Who told you we were setting up anything?”

“Mai-unnie. She told me last week when she dropped by to bring me baby clothes.”

Looking like a thief caught in the act, Seunghyun puffed “Well… it’s not that we’re really setting it up. I mean, if they end up liking one another, I don’t really see anything wrong with that.”

“Honey, they don’t even like one another in the first place so you’re really setting it up” Bom told her husband knowingly “Dara told me she didn’t even have a crush on Ji Yong when we were all in high school and that’s not surprising really as she was always buried in her books.”

“But high school is too long ago and they’re two different people now. Ji is not the man he was back then and Dara most certainly is not the woman she once was.”

“But it’s only been a month.”

“You sound really worried about this…”

“Well it’s because Dara is my friend and – just to make it clear – I know that Ji is a different man now and you love him dearly as your cousin but I don’t see any signs from Ji that he’s the settling type… I mean, not as of the moment. Even now, he still looks like he would want nothing better than get out of this island.”

“You’re not giving my cousin the benefit of the doubt” Seunghyun defended “and besides, if we don’t try it, we won’t see if he is indeed the marrying type.”

“But isn’t this selfish? I mean, be honest with me… Unnie told me that all this started because you and the rest of the guys have begun thinking of how to make Ji just stay here. If bating him a woman doesn’t work, what are you going to do next? And are you not even going to care if Dara ends up getting hurt?”

“Woah! Let’s not get way ahead of ourselves here…” Seunghyun loosened his hold on Bom and made her face him “Honey, it is true that we do want Ji to stay here, I mean, this is where we all grew up in and whether he admits it or not, this is the place where he really belongs but this so-called “set-up” for him and Dara, we’re not doing this just because of that… we’re doing this because they both deserve to be happy and there’s something between the two of them that they don’t see yet but could potentially make the both of them blissful.”

Bom rolled her eyes “Honey… are you listening to yourself? You accuse me of being cheesy when YOU are actually cheesier” she teased.

Seunghyun popped his eyes at her and laughed “Okay! Okay! Guilty as charged! But you’re the one who started all of this, you know.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Remember the day when Ji Yong came back and you went to the hospital?”

“Uh-huh?”

“You talked with hyung –“

“Teddy-oppa?”

“Yes and you pointed out how Dara patrolled like a police over Ji.”

“So?”

“That caused hyung to be watchful of those two. Then he started seeing chemistry between them and I don’t know… he got all of us into it.”

“ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY THAT ALL OF YOU HAVE BEEN CHECKING THOSE TWO FOR EVIDENCES???”

Seunghyun flinched “Well… it wasn’t something we did consciously. It was more of Young Bae would say he saw them playing their cat and mouse thing again and though they deny it, they seem to be enjoying doing that and then Dae said that he saw how absolutely worried Ji was about Dara when she first got sick and –“

“OH MY GOD! Honey!!! You’re like girls!” Bom told him disbelievingly. How could four grown men like her husband, Teddy, Young Bae, and Daesung notice things like these?

“That’s it!” Seunghyun raised his hands up as though to say he was going to stop talking now and not continue on with their discussion “We’re both going to bed now and stop all this talk. Next thing I know, you’re going to accuse me of being gay.”

Bom laughed aloud and pulled his hands down “Honey… I’m not going to accuse you of being gay. I just didn’t expect that all you guys would pull-off something like that.”

“No… we’re going to stop talking about this already.” He maneuvered Bom away from the kitchen table and walked her towards the stairs.

“Honey!” Bom said defensively as they both began to go up the stairs “I’m not going to accuse you of being gay! I actually think it’s cute!”

“No. We’re going to stop talking about this and I’m going to tell the others to stop this already.”

Bom stopped going up and looked down at him with fire in her eyes “Honey! I’ve told you haven’t I? I think that what you and the boys are doing is cute… it’s not going to make me see you any less manly than you are coz I do know you’re man enough. I won’t tease you about it anymore but do promise me one thing ok?”

Seunghyun stopped walking up too and looked at his wife seriously “What promise?”

“If you’re really going to push through with your “set-up”, make sure they really fall in love with one another. I want the both of them to be happy because as you said… they do both deserve it… most specially Dara.”