Chapter 4

 

Jaejoong woke up the following morning, feeling extremely cranky & troubled. His dream or in this case nightmare, was full of nothing but Changmin & Yuri laughing & having a great time together. He couldn’t understand why he was so concerned about seeing the two of them together. He doesn’t really feel anything for Yuri & could careless about what she chose to do with her own time but there was just something about seeing his wife enjoying another man’s company that galled him. Granted, Yuri & Changmin weren’t doing anything wrong but she was still his wife & shouldn’t be hanging around another guy, ‘& who’s fault is that?’ His conscience taunted him.

 

The melodious chime of the doorbell interrupted his thought. He waited in his room for the sound of Yuri opening the door but the doorbell just rang again, ‘She must be out on her morning walk.’ He thought. He quickly got out of bed & hurried to the door, “Hi, mom. This is a pleasant surprises.”

“Kim Jaejoong, don’t tell me you just woke up.” Mrs. Kim scrutinized her son’s untidy short, dark brown hair, “The day is wasting away! Aren’t you supposed to be ready for work?! & what have you been up to?! Never calling your mother anymore!” Mrs. Kim scolded playfully.

“Good morning to you too, mom.” Jaejoong muttered irritably, “I was just too tired from work & slept in a little bit.” He brightened up when he eyed the colorful packages that his mom had with her.

 

Mrs. Kim noticed this & said, “I brought a whole bunch of baby stuff for Yuri, where is she?”

 

“She went for her morning walk.” Jaejoong pouted like a little kid when he realized that there was nothing for him.

 

Mrs. Kim shook her head. Her son will never change, always wanting presents, “I got you some ramen noodles with spicy korean chili dressing.” She smiled when Jaejoong’s face immediately brightened up.

 

They headed towards the kitchen where Jaejoong started to brew some fresh coffee, “You want some?”

 

“No, I already had breakfast, dear.” Mrs. Kim was quiet for a minute, allowing her son to start on his breakfast & then she said in a low voice, “I have been waiting for a chance to talk to you alone.”

 

“What is it, mom?” Jaejoong took a sip of his coffee & waited with dread. He had a feeling of what was coming & wished that his mom would stay out of his business. He mentally prepared himself to listen to what she had to say.

“What is going on in your marriage?”

“What do you mean?” Jaejoong answered cautiously.

“Jaejoong, you & Yuri hardly ever spend anytime together. You never do anything together other than visiting relatives every once in a blue moon. You sleep in separate bedrooms. Do you want me to continue?”

 

Before Jaejoong could say anything, Mrs. Kim added, “& what’s with you working all the time & leaving your poor pregnant wife all alone? You should know that your wife needs you now more than ever. I realize that you have just recently started your business & want nothing more than to make a success out of it but there should be a balance. What good will all the money & success bring if your life is empty & you have no one to share it with?”

 

Jaejoong remained silent. What could he say? His mother was right. After being married for all these months, he had taken it for granted that Yuri would always be in the background while he pursued his goal. He had casually accepted all the little things that Yuri did for him like always preparing his meals, making sure that his clothes were always clean & pressed & lending an understanding ear whenever he had problems at work & in return, he totally ignored her to the point where she started to seek another man’s company.

“Son, if you don’t do something soon, you are going to lose your wife. Yuri is a very nice girl & it would be a great loss if you end up destroying your marriage because of your negligence.”

 

Yuri opened the door to their apartment & was surprised to find Jaejoong sitting in the living room, watching tv, “Jaejoong Oppa, is there anything wrong? Are you alright?”

“Nothing’s wrong. I just decided to take a day off.” He smiled at his wife’s reaction. After the eye opening talk with his mom, he decided to start working on his almost nonexistent relationship with his wife.

“Okay.” Yuri gave Jaejoong a look that loudly proclaimed ‘This is weird’ & started towards her bedroom, “Yuri, wait.” Jaejoong hurriedly stood up & blocked her way.

“What is it?” Yuri was really puzzled. Then she noticed the package on the table. This distracted her thought about the new & strange Jaejoong standing in front of her, “Where did these come from?”

“Mom brought them over this morning. Yuri, listen.”

 

Yuri was no longer paying any attention. She cooed with delight as she opened bags after bags of baby clothes & toys.

“I was wondering if you wanted to go watch a movie or something.” Jaejoong tried again, & trailed off when he noticed the bewildered look on his wife’s face.

 

“Oppa, is there anything wrong? Do you want to talk about it?” Yuri asked in concern.

 

Jaejoong rubbed his face in frustration. This wasn’t going well, “I repeat, there is nothing wrong. What’s so strange about wanting to do something with you?” He could barely keep himself from shouting.

“Um...it’s okay Oppa, you don’t have to entertain me.” Yuri decided to gather all the baby things & hide in her bedroom until this stranger disappeared. What has gotten into him today?

 

Jaejoong gloomily watched his wife leave. Had he neglected her that badly? She couldn’t even seem to accept the fact that he wanted to spend some time with her. He sat down & stared blankly at the tv, ‘This is going to be far more complicated than I figured. Fine then, I will just have to be patient & wait for her.’ He thought, with firm resolution.

 

The tantalizing aroma of Takoyaki tempted Yuri to leave the safe cocoon of her bedroom. She entered the kitchen & was momentarily astonished when she saw Jaejoong preparing for lunch.

 

“Hmm, that smells really good. Do you need any help?”

 

Jaejoong grinned happily, pleased that his idea worked well, “I got everything under control. Why don’t you just sit back & relax? Lunch should be ready soon.”

 

Yuri was still looking on with amazement. She never realized that Jaejoong knew how to cook. She took a bite of the succulent looking meal & her eyes went all big & round.

“Do you like it?” Jaejoong sat back anxiously, waiting for his wife’s verdict but didn’t get any response.

 

“Is it that bad?” Oh no, his first meal for his wife & she hated it.

“This is really good. You are amazing.”

 

“Chef Jaejoong at your service, my dear.” This was the perfect line to break the ice. Pretty soon, both of them were bantering back & forth like they have been doing this all their lives. The mood was slightly reminiscent of the day they met at the bar. Towards the end of lunch, it slowly dawned on them that they do enjoy each other’s company & that they also have a lot of mutual interests.

“Yuri, do you want to go watch a movie? Star wars episode two in playing right now.”

“You like star wars, too? That is great. I heard that Yoda’s fighting scene was awesome. Oh wait, I promised Changmin that I would watch the movie with him.”

 

Jaejoong’s mood instantly plummeted. Changmin again, “Never mind then.” He stood up & started to clear the table.

 

Yuri noticed Jaejoong’s sudden change of expression. Could it be that he was jealous? No, couldn’t be. One would only get jealous if that person cares for the other. Not true in her situation but she already missed the light & easy going mood they were engaged in. This was what she had been hoping for since the day they got married, “I will call Changmin & tell him that you are taking me instead. I’m sure that he won’t mind.”

 

“Do whatever you like!” Jaejoong snapped.

“Oppa? What’s wrong? Do you still want to go watch the movie?” Yuri was both, confused & irritated by her husband’s attitude.

 

Jaejoong had been venting his annoyance on the dishes & was facing the kitchen sink. He took in a deep calming breath before turning around to face his wife again, “Of course, I still want to watch the movie. Why don’t you call Changmin & I will go check the movie schedule.” He was instantly rewarded by a blinding smile from his wife. It was odd that he had never been consciously aware of how beautiful his wife was & at this moment, he felt like he would do anything in the world to see that delightful expression on Yuri’s face again. They were getting ready to leave when the phone rang & Yuri hurried to answer it.

 

“May I speak with Mr. Kim please?” A female voice inquired.

 

“Sure. May I asked who’s calling?” Yuri asked curiously.

“This is his secretary, Hyoyeon.”

“Oppa!” Yuri yelled at her husband, who was standing outside the door, waiting for her, “Phone call! It’s your secretary!”

 

Yuri headed outside, impatiently waiting for her husband to finish his call. At the same time, she was trying to contain her excitement about the prospect of the two of them watching their first movie together.

 

“Yuri.” Jaejoong’s voice died when he saw his wife’s excited expression.

“Are you ready now? We have to get going or we are going to be late.” Yuri could barely stop herself from jumping up & down.

 

“I’m sorry but there’s a problem at work & I have to go in & take care of it right away.” Jaejoong felt his heart clench painfully when he saw his wife’s smile slowly disappear from her glossy peachy lips & her excited feature hardening & then turning expressionless, “Yuri, I’m really sorry.” He added softly. He reached out & gently rubbed his thumb on her cheek as if by doing so, he could bring back the happy Yuri from just a moment ago.

 

“It’s okay.” Yuri forced her frozen lips to move, “I know how important business is to you & it will always come first. Go ahead, don’t worry about me.”

“I promise I will make this up to you.” Jaejoong hesitated by their front door, his heart heavy as he watched his wife heading towards her bedroom again.

 

It was almost midnight as Jaejoong hurried home as fast as he could. For the first time ever, he found that he couldn’t give his undivided attention to work. The thought of Yuri’s dying smile kept on plaguing him all throughout the day & all he could think of was to get home & somehow make that smile appear again.

He was disappointed but not really surprised when he got home to find that Yuri had already gone to bed. Without any conscious thought, his laden footsteps brought him outside her bedroom. He hesitated. A part of him wanted to open her door so badly & see her while another part urged him to leave her alone so she could rest. His hand reached out to turn the doorknob & found it unlocked. After that, it seemed so natural for him to enter her room. He stood by her bed, feeling like a guardian angel, watching his wife sleep peacefully. Minutes went by & the more Jaejoong watched Yuri, the more relax he got. He quietly got closer & carefully leaned down to give his wife a soft kiss on the forehead before finally going to his own room.