eight

  “Oh my gawd.”

  Zhou Mi’s eyes widened in absolute surprise as he stepped into the kitchen in the morning, after smelling a glorious scent waft out of it. In front of his eyes, laden all over the dining table, were plates of sausages, scrambled eggs, toast, bacon strips, sautéed potatoes and fresh fruits. And as little Huiling toddled into the kitchen, she became awestruck, just as her father was.

  “…Is this… actual food?” Zhou Mi’s mouth was practically watering.

  “No Daddy, we’re dreaming.” Huiling’s jaw nearly dropped.

  “Oh hey, Zhou Mi-oppa, Huiling-ah, you’re both awake!” Yoona came out of the kitchen, holding a frying pan in her hands. “I came at the dead of the night yesterday… And uh, Victoria said she’d let me stay awhile, so I thought I’d make you guys some breakfast.”

  Huiling looked at Yoona wonderingly. “We’re really allowed to eat this, Auntie Yoona?”

  “Of course-“

  “Good morning Mi, good morning Huiling, good-“ Victoria had stepped down the staircase, just about to greet Yoona when her eyes fell upon the breakfast that Yoona had cooked. “Oh my gosh! Im Yoona, did you…?” She was in so much surprise that she could not say another word.

  Yoona pushed out a small smile. “…I came late last night, I thought I should make it up to you somehow. Don’t worry, I didn’t raid your fridge, I went to the nearby supermarket and bought all the ingredients I needed.”

  Zhou Mi rubbed his eyes, staring at the dining table with much fascination. “…Huiling, we’re dreaming.”

  “Yoona, you really didn’t have to…” Victoria began, but then she caught the sight of her husband and her daughter’s pleading expressions, she heaved a sigh. “…Thank you so much, we’ll enjoy the breakfast.”

  “That’s great!” Yoona beamed as she hurried back into the kitchen. “I bought some healthy yoghurt too, and some granola bars! You have a wonderful kitchen to cook in, really, there’s so much space.”

  “We’re tucking in!” In a blink of an eye, both Huiling and Zhou Mi had sat down at the dining table, wolfing down the food as if they had not eaten in days.

  “Daddy, is this actually bacon?” Huiling was completely mesmerized by the food.”Is it, Daddy?”

  “Yes, Huiling, it is!”

  Yoona raised her eyebrows, turning to Victoria. “Do you actually feed them, Victoria-unnie? They seem as if they haven’t eaten for weeks.”

  Victoria suppressed her sigh, groaning softly. “We usually have a more healthy breakfast.”

  “Mommy, mommy!” Huiling yelled, with full of food. “Can we eat this for breakfast every day?”

  “I second that!” Zhou Mi called, his cheeks bulging with potatoes, then he caught the eye of his wife and quickly swallowed the potatoes. “But I still love your cooking too, sweetheart.” He tried to coax her with his sweet words.

  Victoria frowned as she threw a glance at Yoona. “The next time you come, Yoona, don’t cook.”

  “Yeonjung-ah, what do you want for your birthday?”

  Kyuhyun intertwined his fingers with his youngest daughter’s, bouncing her on his lap as he held her close to him. It was the weekend, the period of which he would usually have more free time to spend with his children, and whilst Seonjung had gone to get a haircut with her mother, he took it as the chance to have quality time with Yeonjung.

  Yeonjung bit her lip, quietly considering her father’s question. “…I don’t know, Daddy. What do you want?”

  “No, Yeonjung, it will be your third birthday.” Kyuhyun corrected his daughter patiently. “It’s going to be a day to celebrate you coming to the earth, so it’s about what you want.”

  “So on my birthday, Daddy can’t get what he wants?”

  “Nope, Yeonjung. I’ll get what I want on my birthday.”

  “But last time when it was your birthday, you wanted to go for a holiday in the Maldives, but because I was still small, you couldn’t…” Yeonjung recalled. “…Mommy told me that last time.” She looked at her father guiltily. “That day, you didn’t get what you wanted… though it was your birthday.”

  Kyuhyun took a deep breath, smiling as he his daughter’s hair. “Yeonjung-ah, that doesn’t matter. I can go to for beach holidays with Mommy, you and Seonjung when you guys are a bit older, and for now, we can enjoy our time here. You’re even more important to me than a holiday, Yeonjung.”

  “…But Daddy, you still didn’t get what you want.”

  Just as Kyuhyun was about to explain his thoughts to his daughter once more, the front door creaked open, revealing Seohyun and Seonjung. Seonjung bounded towards her father, hugging her father tightly. Kyuhyun hugged his daughter back, then he stood up and gave his wife a kiss, before sitting down and carrying Yeonjung once more.

  “So, did you tell Daddy what you want, Yeonjung?” Seohyun asked casually.

  Kyuhyun glanced at her. “Yeonjung told you what she wanted?”

  “No, but she said that she would tell you.”

  Kyuhyun inverted his gaze back on Yeonjung. “So, Yeonnie, what would you like for your birthday?”

 Yeonjung hesitated for a while, before looking seriously at her father. “I want to go to the Maldives.”

  “Maldives?” Seohyun stared at her daughter in surprise. “You don’t want a new Barbie doll?”

  “Well, because I was born, Daddy didn’t get what he wanted on his birthday, and Daddy says that everyone should get what they want on their birthday.” Yeonjung said innocently. “…I want Daddy to get what he wants… I want Daddy to be happy.”

  Seohyun distinctly felt herself tearing up.

  She sighed anxiously as she checked her watch, having waited a good two hours at his front door. She had been informed that he was at a photoshoot, and he would not reach home until late, but she chose to come early and wait for him anyway. She needed to see him that day, by hook or by crook. And sure enough, a few moments after she checked her watch, a tall figure appeared along the path, stunned as he saw her stand up slowly.

  “Ssul…”

  “Taemin.” Sulli inhaled slowly, then rushed forward, putting her hand on his shoulder. “Taemin…”

  Taemin flinched, after a few weeks of not much conversation with her, it made him wince to feel her soft touch once more. “Ssul, what are you doing here? Why are you waiting at the front door? You still…” He paused, swallowing nervously as he c