The moment Jessica saw the room, she suddenly gripped the sides of my arms. I looked at her and saw her eyes starting to wander around the room. I knew she was mesmerized with the room from the looks in her eyes. Before she could say anything, I brought her out to the balcony, where our parents were seated at the couch, waiting for us. We took a seat as we listened to what our parents were talking about. It seemed like Uncle Ken were discussing with Appa about his business and going through the details of it. Jessica began talking to his Omoni while I just leaned on her shoulders. Our house maid came up to bring some drinks and cakes for us as I looked at my watch and saw that it was already 11.45pm. Suddenly, my phone beeped to indicate an incoming message. I took my phone from the table, read the message and put it back on the table.

"Who was it, Jae?" Jessica asked me after I leaned back into the couch.

"An unknown number, wishing me Happy New Year." I replied nonchalantly.

"Unknown number? You didn't ask who it was?" Jessica looked at me as she tilted her head to one side.

"I didn't. It must be some random messages that people are just passing around or maybe a message send to the wrong person. I'm used to getting all these messages during festive season." I replied as I just smiled at Jessica.

"This is not the first time? Was the phone number that the message was send from always the same?" Jessica asked as I scratched my head, telling her that I didn't even bother looking at the number before deleting it. "You should've at least asked who it was. It could be someone you know. How long have you been receiving this kind of messages?"

"Hhhmmm... since I came back to LA after Omma passed away so about 3 or 4 years ago. I can't really remember since I only received those messages during Christmas, New Year and Valentines Day."

"Valentine's Day? Isn't that your birthday too?" My mouth was in the shape of an 'O' when I realised that what Jessica had said was true. "It could've been someone who knew you, Jae. And not some random messages."

"I didn't realise it until you pointed it out because the messages were usually very general. Like wishing you a happy new year or wishing you a merry christmas or enjoy the day today when it's on valentines day. Come to think of it, the person didn't actually wish me happy valentine's day." I scratched my chin and frowned.

"It could be your secret admirer." Jessica replied as I noticed the change in her voice.

I wrapped my arms around her and leaned in to whisper in her ears. "But I've only got my eyes on you."

The moment I finished my sentence, a loud noise could be heard as the sky was covered with beautiful colorful fireworks.

Everyone was so mesmerized with the show until the fireworks turn into numbers starting from 9 as it was time to countdown. All of us shouted excitedly the numbers accordingly until it reached number 1. At that moment, I wrapped my arms around Jessica's shoulders, making her turn to face me.

"Happy New Year, Sicababy." I smiled as she said the same to me. "May this be the first to many years of us being together. Saranghae."

"Nado, saranghae." Jessica replied as she wrapped her arms around my waist and placed her head against my chest.

"Look at this lovebirds. It reminds me of you and Unnie. Always so loving and caring to each other." I heard Omoni said to Appa.

"Omoni, how was my parents when they were dating?" I asked with curiousity as Jessica turned to look at her mum but her head was still leaning on my chest.

"Your parents love each other a lot. Both of them were the ideal type of a lot of students. During that time, a lot of students knew who your Appa was so he was quite wary of people who wanted to be close to him." Omoni said as Appa nodded his head. "But your Omma was the only one who doesn't seem interested in him. Which I think is one of the reasons that attracted your Appa to her."

"She was one of the top students in school but always humble and willing to help other students. When I came forward to make friends with her, she actually rejected me by saying that she doesn't belong in my clique of friends. It was later that I found out why she said that. Your Omma was always conscious of the fact that she's an orphan and was financially unstable. She used to say that she can't afford to fall in love. But I was persistent. There was something about her that makes me feel complete. Even though I was able to have anything I wanted, but I've always felt that I was missing something. Then I realised that the feeling will disappear everytime I'm with her." Appa explained further as Uncle Ken and Omoni just smiled at him.

"I think I understand how you feel, Appa. I've never felt so complete in my life until the day I saw Sica bowing down to Omma at the crematorium. Seeing her telling Omma that she'll take care of me, makes me feel blissful. That was the moment I realised that she's the missing piece of puzzle in my life." I said as I looked at Jessica who was blushing at the moment.

"Omo omo omo... my daughter is blushing. The ice princess is finally melting." Uncle Ken teased Jessica as she covered her face with her hands.

Our parents continued their discussions earlier and at one point, Uncle Ken voiced out his intention to remarry Omoni once everything is settled. I volunteered to help him out and was just about to ask Jessica's opinion when I realised that she was already asleep. She had lied down earlier with her head on my lap but I didn't notice that she was already asleep. When our parents saw her sleeping, they decided to turn in too. I told Appa that I'll just use the guestroom tonight since I was too tired to carry Jessica all the way to my room. After they left, I carried Jessica, bridal style, and placed her on the bed before joining her to sleep.

********************************

Jessica's POV:

I felt the urge to use the toilet as I opened my eyes and realised that it was already bright. 'Did I fall asleep last night while the rest were still talking?' I asked myself as I turned to look at the body beside me. Jae was peacefully sleeping with both her hands placed under her head as her body was turned sideways. I smiled at the side and my eyes wandered around the room. 'This house is really beautiful.'

 

While Jae was still sleeping, I decide to take a shower first as I went to the toilet. Contemplating on whether to just shower or to use the bathtub, I was shocked when I heard Jae's voice from the bedroom.

"I can prepare the bath for you if you want to use the tub." Jae said as I saw her yawning away while she sat up and rested against the headrest.

"How come you're already awake? Did I disturb your sleep?" I asked Jae, feeling a bit guilty.

"Anni.. I felt the empty space beside me when I was shifting my body around." I saw Jae yawning away. "Do you want me to make the bath for you?"

"It's okay, Jaegi. I'll just take a shower. Why don't you get some more sleep? I can see that you're still sleepy. I'll wake you up once I'm done." I said as I saw Jae nodding her head before she lied down back and covered herself with the blanket.

After an hour, I exited the bathroom while drying my hair as I walked towards the bed.

"Jae... Jaegi.." I shook her shoulders lightly. I saw her stirring her body as she rubbed her eyes cutely before yawning.

"You're done?" I nodded my head to her. "What time is it, Sicababy?"

"It's almost noon, Jae. Get up and wash up okay." I was taken aback when Jae suddenly sat up and looked at me.

"Noon? No wonder I feel hungry. I've missed breakfast." Jae said as she pouted causing me to giggle at her childish behaviour before pushing her off the bed to shower.

We went down to the first floor and took a seat at the dining table. Nancy, the head housemaid, came up to us and asked if we wanted to have lunch. Both of us nodded her head. Before Nancy walked away, Jae asked her about the whereabouts of our parents since we didn't see them at all. Nancy informed us that our parents had left for Uncle Ken's office about an hour ago.

"Should we go and meet them there later, Sica?" I heard Jae asking the question while we were eating our lunch. I just nodded my head as a sign of agreement.

Once we were done with lunch, Jae drove me to Appa's office. It was my first time there as I stood in front of his building. Looking at the signboard that said 'Ken's Fitness Studio', both of us walked in. I looked around and saw all the fitness equipment and also a boxing ring at the corner.

"Jae, is this where you learn and practice your boxing?" I asked as Jae smiled at me while nodding her head.

Jae lead me to Appa's office, knocking the door before we entered. I saw Appa sitting at the couch with Omoni, Appa Park and another elderly man. I greeted all of them as Appa introduced the man as James who was his assistant since the opening of the fitness studio. We joined them at the seats as they continued their discussions. 30mins later, everything was settled as James left the office.

"So what brought the two of you here?" Appa asked me.

"Jae was the one who suggested for us to come here. Since we've got no plans for the day and since I've never been here before, I decided to agree with her suggestion." I replied. "Appa, I saw the boxing ring earlier and realised that I've not seen you box for a long time."

"How about we have a practice match between Jae and your Appa?" Appa Park suggested as I saw Jae instantly shaking her head.

"Andwae.. Appa. I'm just going to lose to Appa Ken." I heard Jae replied as she pouted.

"How about if there's a prize for winning the match?" Appa Park suggested as everyone looked at him. "The winner will have his or her wish granted."

********************************

"How about we have a practice match between Jae and your Appa?" I heard Appa said to Jessica.

"Andwae.. Appa. I'm just going to lose to Appa Ken." I pouted as I can feel my heart sinking. 'I can't lose in front of Sica.' That was the first thing that crossed my mind.

I was about to protest again when Appa said that the winner will have his or her wish granted. Jessica looked more excited than me as she hugged me by the waist and smiled cheekily. I looked at her and pouted.

"What's with that smile, Sica? I've never win a match against your Appa since I started learning boxing so I'm not going to take part."

I saw Jessica pouting at me and frowned, making me feel bad as I scratched the back of my neck. She let go of her hands around my waist and was about to walk away when I grabbed her hands and pulled her towards me.

"Arraseo, arraseo. Just one match, okay." I said as Jessica nodded her head and clapped her hands excitedly.

I went to my car and took out my boxing gear before proceeding to the changing room. When I came out, everyone was looking at me as I ped my jacket to get ready to enter the ring.

(Imagine this is what Jae is wearing.)

Removing my jacket, I warmed up myself while Uncle Ken went off to change too. Jessica stood near the corner of the ring and kept staring at me. After about 15mins, Uncle Ken came on to the ring and I came down to give way for him to warm up too.

"Sica, why do you keep staring at me?" I asked as I drank from my waterbottle. By then, I was already starting to sweat.

"You've really got a nice body Jae." Jessica replied as she bite her lips and tilted her head slightly.

I almost choked on my drink, looking at her aegyo but I calmed myself down.

"So what will you wish for if you win?" Jessica asked me.

"I don't know. I'm more concern about if I could even win." I asked as I heard Uncle Ken calling me to get ready. I went up to the ring and stood in front of Uncle Ken. "Appa Ken, what is your wish if you win the match?" I whispered to him.

"I want your Appa to sponsor my 2nd honeymoon." He giggled by himself. "I was just kidding. Anyway, how about you, Jae?"

"I think I know what I want but I'm not telling you." I heard a bell rang as Appa who had voluntereed to be the referee for the match was the one who rang it.

"Both contestants please go back to your corners first." Appa said as both me and Uncle Ken walked away from each other.

Jessica was standing at my corner while Omoni was standing at Uncle Ken's corner. I chuckled as I looked at Jessica holding to my towel and my waterbottle.

"What's so funny, Jae? Anyway, what were you and Appa whispering to one another earlier?" She asked the moment I stood in front of her.

"It's nothing. Just some small talks between us." I smiled as Jessica nodded her head and inserted my mouthguard for me.

"Jae, just try your best but be careful not to get hurt, okay." I nodded my head and smiled widely to Jessica to ensure her that I'm be fine.

Another bell rang to signal the beginning of the match as me and Uncle Ken walked back to the centre of the ring. After Appa checked all our gears to ensure that everything is in order, he started the match.

It'll be 3 rounds per match with each round about 3mins long. As me and Uncle Ken took our standing stance, I glanced at Jessica. Looking at how confident Uncle Ken was, I was starting to get nervous. 'Why do I feel like I'll lose this round.' I said to myself as I tried to avoid the jabs and hooks from Uncle Ken.

The bell rang and like I expected, I lost the first round. With 1min of break before the next round, I walked to my corner where Jessica was waiting for me. She immediately wipe my sweat away from my face as she kept asking if I was fine. I took the waterbottle and drank a lot from it as I just stood still while Jessica continued wiping my sweat. From my face, down to my neck and my stomach. I felt Jessica suddenly stopped her movement when she reached my stomach area. She looked up at me and I saw a tint of redness on her cheeks.

"Gwenchana, Sica?" I asked, feigning ignorance as Jessica just shook her head.

I placed my hands on top of Jessica's hands and resumed the wiping motion as I saw Jessica's face turning red like a tomato. I was about to say something when I heard the bell rang. I inserted my mouthgurad and was just about to walk away when I heard Jessica's voice.

"Jaegi, hwaiting!!" She did the fist pump pose as I chuckled at her cuteness.

Hearing Jessica cheering me on seemed to have an impact on myself as I felt more motivated for this time round. 'Time to buck up, Jae. Show to Sica that you're capable of protecting her.' I encouraged myself with talks in my head. As I put all my focus on my movement and speed, I was able to avoid most of Uncle Ken's offensive attacks. Catching him offguard, I was able to counter his attacks with my jabs and uppercuts. This time round, it was my turn to win it.

As the bell rang to end the second round, I smiled at Uncle Ken who just nodded his head at me. Walking back to my corner, I explained to Jessica that the match is now tied at 1-1 and the final round will decide who'll be the winner for the match.

"Sica, do you want me to win this match?" I asked Jessica as I rested on the chair.

Jessica nodded her head but after 5seconds, she stopped. "But even if you lose, it's fine with me because I know you've tried your best." She smiled at me as she wiped the sweat from my forehead.

As the final round begin, it was an intense battle between Uncle Ken and me. For some unknown reason, Uncle Ken doesn't seem to be trying his best. 'Is he trying to lose on purpose so that I can have my wish granted instead?' I asked to myself as I lost my focus momentarily and was hit by Uncle Ken's uppercut coincidentally.

I fell down, landing on my as I felt a stinging pain under my chin. I heard Jessica's dolphin scream as Uncle Ken squated beside me to ask if I was okay. I nodded my head and resumed our boxing stance. One more minute to go as I kept avoiding all of Uncle Ken's punches. I countered his attacks and managed to land some punches on him. With my final blow, I managed to give Uncle Ken a jab to his stomach, causing him to stumble. As the bell rang, the results showed that I had won the match. As Jessica cheered me on, Uncle Ken wrapped his arm on my shoulders and praised me for a job well done.

It was my first win against Uncle Ken and I was really satisfied about it. I got down from the ring and ran towards Jessica, hugging her and swinging her around. I heard her laughing as I slowly put her down.

"So since you've won the match, what is your wish, Jae?" Appa asked me as all of us gathered near the boxing ring.

"My wish is for Appa to sponsor Appa Ken and Omoni's 2nd honeymoon." I grinned as everyone looked at Uncle Ken.

"I was just kidding, Jae." Uncle Ken said as he explained about what happened before the match started.

"But people always say what they desired honestly the first time they were asked. You said you were kidding because you didn't want to trouble Appa in any way and because you feel shy about asking it, right? Which is why you didn't really want to win this match." I asked Uncle Ken who was left speechless. "That's why after that uppercut you gave me, I was determined to win this match so that I can grant your wish. Because if you had won, you obviously will ask for some lame wish." I chuckled myself.

"Well, since that's what Jae wished for, then I'll grant it for her. So Hyung, which honeymoon destination do you want to go?" Appa smiled cheekily at Uncle Ken as both of them started to tease each other.

In the meantime, I went to the changing room to change while Jessica sat at a corner with her mum. After that strenuous activity, I suggested for us to go out for dinner as I was feeling really hungry. Appa then told me to meet him at his hotel for dinner since I'll be driving my own car there.

Me and Jessica waited until Appa's driver came to fetch them before the both of us walked to my car. Opening the car for her to get in, I went to my side and started the engine. Seeing that Jessica had not worn her seatbelt, I leaned forward and did it for her.

"Gomawo, Jaegi." Jessica said to me.

"It's okay, Sica. It's just putting on the seatbelt." I replied, thinking that she had thanked me for putting on the seatbelt for her.

"It's for the wish earlier. Even though you've won, you still gave up the wish for my Appa." I just smiled and nodded my head. "Anyway, did it hurt when he gave you the uppercut earlier?" Jessica tilted my head slightly to see if there's any bruise under my chin.

"The hurt will go away soon. Anyway, I'm used to all that. Training with your Appa, had made me tougher and I can usually withstand pain." I said as I focus my attention on the road as we drove off.

The drive to Appa's hotel took about 30mins as I stopped my car in front of the hotel's lobby. Car keys were then handed over for valet parking as me and Jessica entered the hotel. The staff there greeted me as they knew who I was. Some of the female staffs were even smiling widely at me as Jessica suddenly placed her arm under my arm and walked closely with me. Seeing her reactions, I almost chuckled but I pretended that I was confused.

"Wae, Sica? Is something wrong?" I asked with a poker face.

"Anni. Everything is fine." Jessica replied as she kept giving glares to the female staffs standing at the counter.

"Then why are you walking so close to me? Are you by any chance jealous of them?" I pointed at the female staffs as Jessica suddenly turned and glared at me.

"What if I am? Am I not allowed to walk closer to you? Should I distance myself then?" Jessica let go of her hand and pouted.

"Anniya, I was just asking." I said as I placed my arms on her shoulder and pulled her closer to me. Kissing her on the top of her head, I then smiled before leading her to the restaurant.

********************************

When we arrived at the rooftop restaurant, our parents were already there. We walked in to join them as Jessica looked around at the view. Appa had ordered the food beforehand so we didn't have to order any more food.

"Appa, did you ask them to remove the cucumbers from the dishes?" It was obvious from Appa's expression that he had forgotten to do so.

"It's okay, Jaegi. I can eat those dishes that doesn't have cucumber in them." Jessica replied as she placed her hands on my lap.

When the food arrived, luckily only the salad had cucumbers in them so Jessica avoided it. Appa wanted to offer the salad to me but I rejected it.

"It's okay, Appa. Sica doesn't even like the smell. So if I eat it, I won't be able to ki....." Jessica quickly covered my mouth before I could finish my sentence.

"Kiss her, you mean?" Uncle Ken was the one who finished my sentence for me, causing Jessica to turn red.

We ended up laughing about it but the atmospehere became serious when Uncle Ken suddenly talked about his remarriage plans.

"Do you think your dad will accept me again, Yeon Hee?" Uncle Ken asked Omoni as all of us looked at the both of them.

"Frankly speaking, I'm not sure, Yeobo. After our divorce, Appa did asked me to remarry with some wealthy guy but I objected his suggestions. It came to a point that I decided to move out from the house, giving the reason that I wanted to be independant. Me and Sooyeon will only go to visit them during festive seasons. Since I've taken over the business, he spends most of his time at home with Omma." Omoni replied.

"Appa, you should just give it a try. You're more financially stable now. There's no excuse for Harabeoji not to accept you again. You will have my support in this, Appa so don't worry about it, okay." Jessica said.

"And you'll have my support too, Hyung. I'm sorry that I wasn't there when things went bad for you and your family. If only I knew, I would have given you my help." It was Appa's turn to show his support for Uncle Ken.

"It's okay, Soo Ri. During that period, you were very busy with your business and also with the voluntary works that you do. I didn't want to be a burden to anyone and I don't want to be indebted too. Let's just hope everything will go smoothly when we go back to Korea tomorrow."