The house was quiet when she returned. Namjoo almost assumed Sehun’s mother was out with Eun Bi somewhere until she went upstairs and found Eun Bi in their room. Most uncomfortably, on their bed. The sight was most insulting.

“Oh! You scared me, Namjoo,” Eun Bi claimed as she climbed off the bed with a hand to her heart.

Namjoo merely stared at her, wondering if the woman wanted to see her amused or not.

“I’m sorry, I was just…I was just cleaning up…” Eun Bi stuttered then eyed the door, “I’ll leave.”

The anger bursting through her veins was a feeling foreign to Namjoo, but she wouldn’t deny she felt that her space had been violated. Not just hers, Sehun’s as well. Their room.

“Next time,” Namjoo made her stop at the doorway, “wait outside until either Sehun or I let you in.”

Namjoo didn’t even want to turn to look at the conniving girl and she partially thanked God for not letting Sehun marry that immature person. She could only see it within her mind’s eye what a sorry person he would be if his mother actually got her wish with him.

When the door clicked signaling that Eun Bi was no longer there, she let out an angry breath and looked around to see if anything was misplaced.

*****

It was just a strand of hair anyway, Eun Bi didn’t get why Namjoo would make such a big deal over it. Anyway, she’d gotten just what she’d come for. A few strands of Sehun’s hair and where best to look, but the bed?

Once she’d climbed onto the mattress she’d wondered how it was to lie next to him at night so physically, but Sehun hadn’t shared the privilege with her all because of Namjoo.

Namjoo who ruined it all, took all the chances that belonged to her away. The thought made her angry and upset. No one else deserved such moments with Sehun more than her. Thinking about what they did on that bed, hugging, and cuddling had her heart fuming with jealousy.

Next, she just needed to get some kind of DNA sample from Soo Ae, but how? Namjoo would always be around her daughter or Sehun would. She couldn’t do it in front of Sehun’s father either. Even he was on their side. Eun Bi needed to be careful, but how? There were numerous ways of collecting data for a DNA test. Just how was she going to go about this one?

*****

“There’s a funeral down in Yeongwol,” Sehun’s mother started when they sat down for dinner that evening. “Sehun, why don’t you go with your father to go pay your respects?”

“He doesn’t need to go. They’re just distant relatives.” His father croaked from the head of the table, his wife stared disapprovingly.

“Sehun should at least learn some manners about funerals,” his mother indulged. “He’s our son and should be aware of how to pay respects at his age. Sehun, go with your father.”

“Can I come too?” Soo Ae turned to Sehun.

“No, you stay home.” His mother immediately snapped. Namjoo shot her a glance before reaching over to wipe Soo Ae’s dirty lips.

“It’s just boring adult stuff, Soo Ae. You stay home with your mother.” Sehun coaxed.

“Did you hear that?” His mother perked up as if she wanted to pick a fight. “Boring, he called the funeral boring. This is what I’m talking about. You need to teach him correctly.”

Namjoo caught the eye roll of his father. Then with a sigh, “Lets go, Sehun. For God knows it could take the whole day, but at least it won’t last a week.”

He was so easily chided by his parents, Namjoo found herself thinking.

That night when he went in for his shower she began flipping through the TV hoping there would be something she might find interest in. So far, there was nothing. A few minutes later after Sehun stepped out he sat with her along the edge of the bed, watching her flip hrough the channels.

He groaned from beside her, “I really don’t like funerals.”

“Why do you let them push you around,” Namjoo said. “Aren’t you too old for that?”

“I don’t know,” he threw himself back onto the bed. “Mom always wants me to do what she wants.”

“You always let her have her way,” Namjoo mumbled, worried if the volume was too loud. She didn’t want to wake Soo Ae up if she was already deep asleep.

“No, I don’t.”

“You want to bet?” He propped himself up and she turned to look at him. “I didn’t let her have her way with Eun Bi.”

Namjoo slightly raised her brow before recalling how she found Eun Bi on their bed earlier in the day. A knot formed somewhere within her chest, tightened and threatened to revolt. Eun Bi in their room. Though she didn’t prize the bed, it was fact that it was supposed to be theirs now.

“You should pray and thank God you didn’t get married with her,” Namjoo turned away. Then turning off the TV, “This is boring.”

As she reached over to set the remote down, Sehun grabbed her arm before she could do anything else. “Don’t go to sleep yet. Lets talk some more.”

She turned to him with a frown, “Talk about what?”

He shrugged, “Maybe more smack about Eun Bi?”

Namjoo rolled her eyes and pulled her arm away from him. “You’re just going to be late for work tomorrow. Go to sleep.”

“Lets go to church this Sunday,” Sehun managed to change the course of topic. “We can go get you and Soo Ae some nice dresses tomorrow.”

“I’m not a church person,” she found herself mumbling.

“I won’t make you go all the time. My parents are religious, but even I don’t go as much as them,” Sehun pointed out. “How about it? Since we’re not together on Saturday again, lets do something together Sunday.”

“Fine,” she gave in.

“Is there something else you’d like to do?”

Namjoo thought about it. She didn’t have many aspirations. All she cared about was Soo Ae’s health and happiness.

“Then lets eat out tomorrow.” Sehun suggested. “I kind of get sick of eating food at home all the time. We need a change of things to spice things up sometimes.”

“Your mother won’t like that idea,” she found herself telling him.

“Are you scared of her?”

“Me?!” She repeated as if it was a said to offend her, but Sehun laughed at her reaction. “I’m just talking sense here.” She felt like slapping his arm with her hand; however, just stared at him.

“Well, what can she do about it if we already planned it?” He asked. Moving back along the bed, he threw the covers over, “All right, lets get some sleep. You’ll bring me lunch again tomorrow, won’t you?”

And it was exactly just that. Somehow, Sehun always had her doing things she had no complete control over. Here she was, sitting with him in the lounge sharing the lunch she’d brought for him. For some reason, Chanyeol didn’t make his show that day, so they were left as a couple in the lounge with his co-workers making eyes at them, teasing Sehun about how lucky he was. With every smile that came their way, Namjoo could only focus on the embarrassment welling up in her. Next time, she promised, she’d bring an extra set of utensils so they wouldn’t have to share the same fork or spoon.

*****

Just as promised from the previous night, Sehun came for them at the daycare and from there headed toward the mall. They were going to shop extravagantly till their legs dropped, was what Sehun promised Soo Ae. By this age and time, Namjoo already lost interest in fashion and the trendy stuff. All her attention sat on Soo Ae to make sure she didn’t get lost. Her worst nightmare would be losing her daughter in such a dangerously thick crowd.

Soo Ae wasn’t the tall or strong type she hoped to be. Her physique was fragile and small, but she was a pretty little girl. If any parent who’d been unable to have a child of their own saw her, they’d want her immediately. Never would Namjoo in her wildest dreams give up her daughter to anyone.

“Soo Ae,” Namjoo called out, “don’t go too far ahead.”

“Yes, mommy,” Soo Ae shouted, spinning around to smile at her.

“Goodness,” she muttered to herself, “she’s going to get lost at this rate.”

Namjoo raced forward when Soo Ae let out a slight shriek as she bumped into an older man and toppled back onto the floor.

“I told you to be careful!” Namjoo scolded pulling her up. “Why didn’t you listen to me?!”  

Soo Ae stared at her bewildered with large eyes about to cry, “Sorry, mommy.”

“It’s ok, Soo Ae, come here,” Sehun grabbed her hand. “Hold my hand from now on, ok?”

“It’s ok?!” Namjoo repeated, turning to Sehun wondering how he could say it’s ok when it wasn’t at all.

“Why are you overreacting?” He asked. “She just fell.”

“She could’ve gotten hurt,” Namjoo reasoned, “more or less, lost!”

Sehun stared at her as if contemplating about how he should argue with her. “Are you always so nervous with her? Haven’t you walked the streets hand in hand before? You used to let her run the fields in Muju without attendance.”

“That’s different!” Namjoo fought back, even when she knew he’d made a point. Then when she glanced down at Soo Ae to find her clutching onto Sehun’s legs with both hands, she suddenly felt apologetic. God, she really despised how they worked her heart their way.

“Come on,” Sehun pulled her along gently.

She felt wounded, but let him lead her along. When they finally entered a dress shop a few minutes later, she watched Soo Ae busy herself with admiring the dresses and jewelries laid out for display.

“She’s not going anywhere,” Sehun assured her. Wrapping an arm around her from behind to hold a dress out in front of her, he called out, “Soo Ae, what do you think about this? Your mommy will look pretty, don’t you think?”

“I like it!” Her daughter enthusiastically answered.

That was when she finally glanced down at the soft black dress and also when she realized he had his chest pressed against her back. Namjoo opened to speak. Nothing but a breathless gasp of air escaped her lips.

“All right, lets get this,” he stepped away. “Come on, Soo Ae,” he held his hand out for her, “lets go pay for mommy’s dress and we’ll get you something then lets go eat.”

“Good! I’m hungry!” Jumping toward him she latched onto his hand, followed him to the tall counter.

*****

Namjoo suddenly became quieter. Sehun was pretty sure it was because she was closely keeping her eye on Soo Ae. He was also afraid of losing in her such a big place, but he knew well that Soo Ae was a sensible child. Under no circumstances would she just walk off and leave her parents worrying over her.

Transferring some of his food onto Soo Ae’s plate he watched her beam at him and gobble up the remaining of her dish. They walked around the mall and bought Soo Ae some more clothes before sitting down to watch her play at the indoor playground with the other children. The sun was setting outside through the fancy windows framed in dark green. An orange hue streaked the sky, bidding daylight goodbye. As cliché as it sounded, he really wished it would take all the time it needed so he could spend a longer time here with his little family.

“She’s so big,” Namjoo suddenly spoke up. “I remember when it was just yesterday she learned how to start crawling.”

A bittersweet gaze full of forlorn emotions swirled like cream in her eyes. Namjoo was happy yet sad. Above that all, Sehun was sure she felt most proud of Soo Ae for coming this far with her.

“Did I tell you about when she used to cry because she didn’t know me? I just picked her up then,” Namjoo reminisced.

“I think you did,” he replied quietly. He wanted to hug her or put his arm around her so he could feel what she was feeling, share the memories with her, and learn more about the times he’d missed out.

“I never imagined she’d grow up so much. In one moment she’s my baby and in the next, she’s a big girl.” As she spoke, he couldn’t take his eyes off the content happiness caressing her dear face. He also wished that someday she could learn to treasure him as much as she did her daughter.

“You did a good job, Namjoo,” he said touching the back of her head and gently rubbed her hair. She was so admirable in a hundred ways. He was jealous. His respect for her was even more than what he had for himself.

*****

It was early Saturday morning. Namjoo would have slept an hour and a half more with Sehun curled close by. After confessing so brutally to her, he’d taken it as her permission to let him near when they slept. She could always feel his body heat in the middle of night when she tossed and turned, and whether he’d noticed or not, he never moved.

Now she was up with Sehun groggily lying on the bed watching as she ironed a shirt his mother wanted her to fix up. Namjoo only hoped today that Sehun’s mother and Eun Bi had plans outside the house, for she really wanted to go back to sleep. She knew better than to expect any of that. With Sehun and his father gone, the witch wouldn’t let her off.

“Get up, will you?” Namjoo asked without looking at him. She knew he was awake. There was this unexplainable feeling she got whenever he looked at her, and she was getting that feeling right now.

“I like it here,” Sehun replied, his voice croaking because he’d just waken. “I’ll lay here for a bit.”

Namjoo released a small sigh and kept on with her chore. If Sehun’s mother noticed even the slightest bit of wrinkle, her head would be ranted off. Even if there were no wrinkle, she was plenty sure Sehun’s mother would say something. Namjoo sighed again at that thought.

“Want me to do it?” Sehun suddenly offered. When she glanced up he was sitting at the edge of the bed. “Bet I’m more pro than you.”

Frowning at his put down she bit back, “You sure don’t look pro to me.”

Sehun snorted before standing up. Namjoo was ready to fight over the ironer with him and tightened her grip on it, but as he neared she realized she was wrong. Along with his approach she sensed an aura of flirt and gentleness. She about stepped back before Sehun wrapped his long arm around her and over her grip on the machine. Before she knew it, she was trapped.

“Ha, you’re funny,” Namjoo mumbled trying to shrug out. She wanted to fight off his daring move, but to her disadvantage he was both taller and stronger.  

“You’re going to burn one of us if you keep moving,” Sehun stated and as he spoke, she felt his head brush her hair.

Too close for comfort, but she neither moved nor struggled anymore. Namjoo quietly gulped as he pressed his chest into her back just as he had the other day at the mall. His hug was big and strong, almost overwhelming. Sehun never hugged her this way before, not with this kind of intent flowing from him. When she realized she knew what he was trying to convey, she grew even more nervous.

His face brushed her hair again. He was saying something, probably about how to better iron clothes, but she wasn’t understanding any of it. All she felt and was conscious to, was the touch of his hand over hers and the warmth from his body touching hers. Yet she still hadn’t fended him off.

Her heart had picked up pace and she was afraid he was feeling it. Namjoo wanted to explain herself, that this wasn’t what he was thinking it was. No word escaped from her lips. From the corner of her eyes she watched him lean over her to concentrate on ironing his shirt. Part of her wondered if he knew what he was doing to her and was playing dumb, but as she wondered the thoughts were slowly put to sleep.

“What are you doing?!” His mother’s voice rose from the door. The two of them spun around to see the woman staring at them, shooting lasers from her eyes. “I told you iron my son’s shirt and you still haven’t finished?! Are you two finished playing around?! You have a funeral to go to!”

“You should at least knock, mom,” Sehun told, his arm locked over her shoulders. And as Sehun’s mother continued scolding her, she realized she wasn’t paying attention. Her eyes drifted toward her shoulder where his hand sat. Miraculously, Namjoo felt a sense of security swarm over her.

All throughout that morning Namjoo couldn’t help but feel queasy – in a good way – whenever Sehun brushed his arm against hers. She didn’t like the way she was feeling, but she couldn’t help it either. It was just there, drumming her heart along. And as much as she tried to focus on her other tasks, her thoughts trailed back to the way he’d hugged her from behind.

*****

“I hate funerals,” Sehun grumbled that morning when she struggled to get his tie on right. “So boring, so gloomy.”

“At least it doesn’t last all week,” Namjoo quietly reminded, slightly amazing herself that she was paying attention for once. Right, paying attention to the man who was her husband while she’d ignored everyone else. She wanted to whack herself.

Sehun lightly laughed, “I guess so. Anyway, we’ll be together tomorrow, so that makes up for this. I’m looking forward to it.”

Namjoo glanced up at him and watched him give her a smile. A half hour later when Sehun left with his father she felt stupidly lost in this dumb house without him. And she wondered what the heck they’d do on a Saturday inside the house together anyway. The thought didn’t last before Sehun’s mother was ordering her on an errand out of town, to Chuncheon – in another province.

“We’ll take care of Soo Ae. She’ll just be a burden to you if you go,” his mother wouldn’t take her argument for it before she was given money to go to the bus station. Namjoo felt a sense of insecurity fall over her. How could she trust Sehun’s mother and Eun Bi with her little daughter? When they didn’t like her?

She was waved off to a cab waiting outside that would drop her off at the terminal. There she wandered around the ticket booth, waiting in the long line for her turn. As she stared around the crowd she started feeling scared. For certain, she knew she couldn’t trust Soo Ae alone with Eun Bi and Sehun’s mother.

That’s it, she decided, she’d call Tao but hesitated. He didn’t have a car and she didn’t want him borrowing a vehicle. As she stepped out of line, she stared at the clock. Time wasn’t waiting.

*****

Chanyeol would have slept in until afternoon, but he was suddenly running up the stairs and into the bus station. It was packed majorly because it was a Saturday. Wherever he looked, the crowd only seemed to thicken. Bodies shoved him aside like he was the one who was in the way. Fighting his way through them, whispering to himself how this was so much worse than afternoon traffic, his eyes hurriedly searched around.

After receiving the call he’d woken right up, dressed, and left without breakfast. He never went a day without breakfast. Today out of all days he wasn’t doing anything for himself. How surprising, he thought.

Then he heard her voice, “Chanyeol!”

Swerving around he saw Namjoo staring back at him, her eyes big with wonder and curiosity as well as with relief. And he noted, she was glad to see him.