Jung Yong Hwa

Eomma is calling! Why is Eomma calling right now of all times! Aishhh!

 

I excused myself from Hyun, as I took my laptop with me back to my own room. I knew I couldn’t talk to my Mom without waking up Cherisse because talking to her, or any one of my family really, is usually noisy and almost always end up with a lot of shouting and laughing. I sat on the undisturbed bed and took my time getting settled, before I unwillingly accepted my Mom’s call.

 

“Eomma..”, I said, trying to paste a smile on my face.

 

“Yong Hwa-yah! You really can’t call me even in your rest day?!”, started my Mom.

 

“Huh? How did you—Hyung! Aishhh!”, I exclaimed, realizing she must have called my Manager first, to make sure I wasn’t in the middle of a shooting or a press-con before she called me.

 

“Yes, I know! So you have no excuse not to talk to me!”, my Mom said, trying to glare at me but failed because she has a face that just doesn’t suit the look of an angry lady.

 

 

“Actually, I can only talk until Che—”

 

“Oh no, you don’t! You’ll talk to me as long as I want to talk to you. Now what is this about you getting a wife and an instant baby?! Is this true?”, she asked after cutting me off.

 

Uh-oh.. Here we go..

 

“Eomma, didn’t Hyung tell you what happened when you called him?”, I said, trying to get out of the topic.

 

“Of course I asked, but he seemed a little distracted.. He told me he was busy.. But he let me know you weren’t, so I called you..”, she informed me.

 

Thanks a lot, Hyung! Aishhh!

 

“Ummm What’s your question again, Eomma?”, I hedged, hoping she gets distracted herself.

 

“Jung Yong Hwa. I know that tactic. Your Appa does that to me a lot, but he doesn’t seem to understand that that DOES NOT work on me. Tell me what happened in Seoul. Now.”, she said quietly.

 

Uh-oh..

 

I realized she was being dead-serious when she talks to me quietly because the word “quiet” doesn’t apply to our family. I couldn’t get out of it anymore, so I resignedly told her everything I could remember. It’s been a while since I finished telling her my story, and all she did was sniff and dab a tissue under her eyes.

 

 

 

Mrs. Jung

“Eomma, stop crying.. She’s alive and healthy.. We’re working on making her happy, and I think she’s getting there.. And we’re all okay.. So please stop crying..”, my son pleaded with me because I knew he hates seeing me, or any one that he loves, cry.

 

“What’s the baby’s name?”, I asked him, sniffing.

 

“Cherisse Angelli.. Cherisse means darling and Angelli means messenger of God or what we call Angels..”, he informed me proudly, surprising me in return.

 

Omo.. I didn't even think he'd know the baby's name in the first place! But knowing its meaning..?! Something's going on with my son..

 

“That’s beautiful.. How old is she?”, I inquired again.

 

“She’s only a year and 6 months old, but she’s very, very bright, Eomma.. She picks up words and phrases she hears from us and seem to understand it, even if it’s not in her native tongue.. She’s French, Eomma, did I tell you that? She has the most mesmerizing blue eyes I have ever seen.. When she looks at you, it’s as if she’s seeing something that’s deeper than what you’re projecting.. It’s as if she can see through your very soul.. When she smiles at you, every pain, fear, misery, and tear you shed and went through were all worth it.. And I really don’t mind her clinging to me.. In fact, I love it when she hugs me or hold my hand or even when she grabs my shirt.. It makes me feel like she can’t live without me.. And, Eomma, when she called me ‘Daddy’ for the first time—aigooo.. I don’t even have the words to describe the feeling..”, he said gushing and so full of feelings, I couldn’t believe I’m talking to my own son.

 

Omonaaaaa! Is this really my son, Jung Yong Hwa?! It looks like when she grabbed his shirt, it was really his heart she grabbed and never let go.. Aigooo.. What has he gotten himself into..

 

“What about the girl? Is it true what some of the tabloids say? Was she ummm really a, you know, a man before?”, I finally asked, not sure how to say it.

 

“EOMMONI! I told you to stop reading tabloids! All they say are fabrications and stories they got from their imaginations!”, my son scolded me.

 

“So she’s a real lady then?”, I asked, just to confirm it.

 

“Aishhh! Eomma! YES, SHE’S A REAL WOMAN! SINCE BIRTH!”, he shouted, making me cringe.

 

“And you find her pretty..?”, I interjected.

 

SNORT!

 

“Pretty?! She’s beautiful, Eomma! Not just pretty! Cham!”, he snorted derisively, as if I just called the girl we were talking about flat-out “ugly”.

 

“So you like her then..?”, I added quickly.

 

“Who wouldn’t?! She’s not just beautiful Eomma.. She’s also very kind, generous, super talented, and she excels in everything! She’s a genius if you ask me! I think I’m actually fa—whoa! Yah, what am I saying?! Eomma, are you trying to—”

 

“So that means you’re not—”, I faltered, as other emotions came over me. Relief. Happiness. Hope.

 

“What..? I’m not what? Why are you crying this time? Eomma, what?! What is it now?!”, he asked me, panicking as I dabbed at the new tears that sprung out my eyes.

 

“It means you’re not gay.. Don’t get me wrong.. I have nothing against gay people, if that’s what you are, then I’ll support you 110%, like I did your decision to be an actor and now a musician.. But now that I know that you’re not gay, I’m so happy because I get to have grandchildren from you! I want lots! And soon please.. You’re not young anymore, son.. You’re 32! Omo! Which makes me—never mind.. So you better—Yong Yong-ie? Yong Hwa-yah, are you still there?”, I cut short what I was saying when I noticed my son’s figure on the computer screen wasn’t moving anymore. At first, I thought I got disconnected that’s why he’s frozen on the monitor, but then he moved and slapped his hand on his face.

 

“You thought I was— Have I ever given you— Seriously?! Why would you— You THOUGHT I was— Why?! This is ridiculous! My own MOTHER! Aishhh!”, he stammered, huffing incredulously.

 

“What? It’s your fault! You never brought any girlfriend to meet me in 32 years! Not even in high school! Tabloi—newspapers kept reporting about you and Shin Hye-ssi, but you kept denying it.. Even Ha Ra-ssi, who we all know likes you a lot, you don’t give the time of day! You barely call me and when we do talk occasionally, you don’t tell me anything! Then these articles came out! What am I suppose to think?!”, I berated him, giving in to my instinct to defend why I thought of him that way in the first place.

 

“I’m not gay, Eomma.. I don’t have anything against them either.. In fact, I have a lot of friends in the business who’s having a hard time because they can’t disclose their true selves to their own families for fear of rejection.. Not to mention their fans, who’ll probably turn their backs on them if word gets out..”, he said seriously, sighing sadly afterwards.

 

“Really? Who?! Come on, I’m your Mother! I won’t say anything to anyone! Name just a couple! Is J—”

 

“EOMMONI! Are you high on something?! First, you kept READING tabloids, which I told you to stop doing by the way, because you get in your head that somehow those ridiculous articles are believable! Then, you thought I was gay ALL THESE YEARS without even asking me if it’s true or not! Now, you’re actually going to name names and ask me if they are gay?! Cham!”, he said, huffing again, cutting me off. I was really curious, although I feel sorry for them and their family, who’s actually alienating their own sons from themselves.

 

“Arasseo! Arasseo! Then let’s go back to what we were talking about earlier.. What’s her name then, your lady ‘friend’?”, I asked, curious now of the girl my son was about to play house with.

 

“Hyu—Seohyun..”, he said abruptly, but with a hint of a smile on the edge of his mouth.

 

Hmmm.. He was so talkative about the baby, but with this ‘Seohyun’, he seemed so secretive.. Interesting..

 

“Where is she? And the baby? I want to meet them..”, I told him, trying to look beyond him, hoping to get a glimpse of them.

 

“Bab—Cherisse is still sleeping in the next room and Hyu—Seohyun-ssi is with her, trying to finish some of her work.. We’re trying to let Cherisse sleep on, so we can spend some time for ourselves..”, he said, smiling widely without realizing it, “Individually..”, he quickly added, while turning his face away from the screen.

 

Aigooo.. Really INTERESTING..

 

“Then call me once the baby’s awake.. I want to meet them bo—”

 

“Eomma—”, he cut me off as he straightened up and seemed to be listening so intently for something.

 

“What is it—”

 

“I have to go! I’ll talk to you again soon, okay?! Give my regards to Appa and the rest! I miss you and I love you all! Bye!”, he said so fast that only ‘Eomma’ and ‘bye’ were the only words I understood.

 

“Yah! Yong Hwa-yah! I want to meet them! Call me ba—”, was all I could say before I saw him get up and push down the screen of his laptop. I was disappointed that I didn’t get to meet, or even see, the baby and the girl named ‘Seohyun’. The tabloids’ pictures were all blurry or have their faces completely covered. I was still staring at the dark monitor, contemplating on the things my son had just told me when I heard a familiar voice from behind me.

 

“Imo.. What are you doing there all by yourself? Come to the dining room and eat with us, we bought some snacks..”, beckoned my eldest female niece, Eun Ji, from the doorway of the family room I was in.

 

“Oh, you’re here.. I was just talking to your cousin, Yong Yong-ie, but he had to go.. Who’s with you, by the way?”, I her direction and asked her.

 

“Really? You got a hold of Yong Yong Oppa?! That’s a first!”, quipped Jin Ri from behind Eun Ji, munching on a big piece of bread.

 

“What? Like it’s hard? I just talked to him a few hours ago.. I asked him for my birthday gift..”, said Sue Ji with a big smile, plopping on the couch and flipping through a magazine.

 

“Just these girls and Ga Young-ie, Imo..”, said Eun Ji, who finally had a break on the conversation to answer my question. I smiled at her.

 

I love my nieces and nephews like they were my own kids. They all grew up so close together that they spend their time with each other whenever they can, especially now that 2 of them are already married, Soo Jung and Hyun Joong (one after the next, respectively), and the rest have their own work to attend to. My son, Yong Hwa, lived here in Busan with his cousins Jong Hyun, Eun Ji, and Soo Jung till their teenage years in a compound our family owned, while my eldest nephew, Hyun Joong lived in Seoul, Sue Ji in Gwangju, Jin Ri in Yangsan, and Ga Young in Jeonju. We all stay in each other’s houses whenever we visit, while our house is the usual hang-out of these kids when they are here in Busan. Even Eun Ji, who has their own house next door, sometimes sleeps-over. I guess she misses her sister Soo Jung, who has her own family now. Jong Hyun only sleeps-over when either Yong Hwa or Hyun Joong is around.

 

“Imo!”, said another familiar voice from behind Eun Ji.

 

“Ga Young-ie! Come here and give me a hug..”, I exclaimed, as the youngest of my nieces came bounding towards me. She hugged me and sat on my lap as she always does since she was a child.

 

“Yah, Moon Ga Young! Stop sitting on Imo’s lap like you’re still a little girl! You’ll hurt her one of these days! Look at you, you’re bigger than her!”, scolded Jin Ri, who was eating a piece of bread beside Sue Ji on the couch.

 

“And you’re not 5 anymore! You’re 25, for Pete’s sake! So act like one!”, reprimanded Sue Ji, still looking at the magazine she brought with her.

 

“Whatever, you two are still OLDER than me! Merong!”, countered Ga Young, sticking her tongue out, which earned a glare from my two other nieces.

 

Eun Ji whistled and called a truce before they could retaliate. Then she set down a tray of muffins, doughnuts, different kinds of bread, and a pitcher of orange juice on the table in front of Sue Ji and Jin Ri, which caught the full attention of the two. I looked at all of them fondly and remembered the only girl missing, Soo Jung, and the 3 boys, Hyun Joong, Yong Hwa, and Jong Hyun, the ring leaders.

 

How I wish to see them all together again.. I wonder when will it happen again..

 

“Imo.. Who were you talking to? Because I can still hear them..”, said Ga Young suddenly. She occupied the seat that I just vacated and started fiddling with the computer.

 

“Really? I was talking to Yong Yong-ie..”, I informed her.

 

“Just Yong Yong Oppa? But I’m hearing a girl’s voice, too..”, said Ga Young, confused.

 

“Whaaaaaaaaaat????!!!!!”, exclaimed Eun Ji, Jin Ri, and Sue Ji at the same time, crowding around me and Ga Young.

 

“What are they saying?”, asked Jin Ri.

 

“Turn up the volume!”, demanded Sue Ji.

 

“Lower your voices!”, scolded Eun Ji.

 

“Shhh!!!”, I hushed them, effectively quieting them all at once, as we started to listen to the conversation between my son and the girl named ‘Seohyun’.

 

 

 

Jung Yong Hwa < Mrs. Jung(MrsJ) – Eun Ji(EJ) – Jin Ri(JR) – Sue Ji(SJ) – Ga Young(GY)>

“Yah! Yong Hwa-yah! I want to meet them! Call me ba—”, I heard my Mom say before I got up and hurriedly push down the screen of my laptop to turn it off. I had to end my conversation with my Mom because I thought I heard Hyun call me from next door.

 

Cherisse must be up..

 

I waited just to make sure. After a few minutes, I heard a sob and started walking towards the adjoining room door.

 

“Yong Oppa, I’m sorry to bother you, but she’s looking for you..”, said Hyun from the doorway, carrying a sobbing Cherisse.

 

< EJ : “Yong Oppa?!” >

< JR : “Who’s the girl talking???” >

< SJ : “Who’s ‘she’???!” >

< GY : “She sounds familiar to me..” >

< MrsJ : “Shhh!”, shushing the girls, while distributing articles clipped from different newspaper and printed from the internet. >

 

“Awww, don’t cry, babycakes.. I’m here..”, I said as I took Cherisse from Hyun and hugged her.

 

< EJ / JR / SJ / GY / MrsJ : “BABYCAKES???!”, they all mouthed to each other, unable to believe that Yong Hwa even knows that term. >

 

“Daddy..”, sobbed Cherisse, hugging me back with her one arm, while Hyun held the other hand.

 

< EJ / JR / SJ / GY / MrsJ : “DADDY???!”, they all mouthed to each other again, eyes widening. >

 

“See.. I told you Daddy’s here..”, Hyun said to Cherisse without realizing she just called me ‘Daddy’. My heart started beating so fast that Cherisse straightened up and looked at me. She placed her palm on my chest and had a questioning look on her face as if to ask me what was wrong with my heart. I just smiled at Cherisse and hoped that Hyun doesn’t realize what’s happening.

 

< MrsJ : “Omo! She called him ‘Daddy’!” >

< EJ / JR / SJ : “Ayieeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!”, mouthed the 3 girls older girls, squealing with pleasure and hitting each other with delight. >

 

“Has she had her milk, Hyun? Oh, I bought goguma cookies for her, didn’t I? Maybe we should try feeding her that..”, I suggested, just as Cherisse touched her lips, indicating she is hungry.

 

< EJ : “Hyun? I thought her name is ‘Seohyun’?” >

< MrsJ : “It is ‘Seohyun’.. At least, that’s what Yong Yong-ie told me..” >

< JR : “I think ‘Hyun’ is HIS nickname for HER..” >

< SJ : “Duh! Like HER nickname for HIM is ‘Yong’!” >

< EJ / JR / SJ : “Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!”, squealed the 3 girls again in unison. >

 

“Oh, ma chérie affamés.. Que voudriez-vous manger, mon bébé? Voulez-vous quelques biscuits?1 (Oh, my darling is hungry.. What would you like to eat, my baby? Would you like some cookies?)”, Hyun addressed Cherisse.

 

< MrsJ : “She speaks FRENCH?!” >

< GY: “Apparently..” >

< SJ : “Whoaaa!” >

< JR: “Impressive!” >

< EJ : “Nice catch, Yong Yong Oppa!” >

 

“Oui, s’il vous plaît, Mommy..2 (Yes, please, Mommy..)”, Cherisse answered, nodding and smiling, which earned a kiss on the cheek from Hyun.

 

Envious? - Shut up.

 

< MrsJ : “Awww.. She called her ‘Mommy’!” >

< SJ : “Now the baby speaks FRENCH?!” >

< JR : “So cute!!!” >

< EJ : “Of course! She’s a French national!” >

< GY : “It’s their native language! Duhhh!” >

 

“Okay, we’ll feed her first.. Then what would our baby like to do next? Wanna go out and play in the sand again with Mommy and Daddy?”, I asked Cherisse, tickling her, but really trying not to blush at the words ‘our’ and ‘Mommy and Daddy’, although I think my smile gave away how happy I am to say those words. In the corner of my eye, I saw Hyun smile and look away. I’m guessing she liked hearing it, too. I sighed happily.

 

< SJ : “OUR baby?! Seriously?! Cham!” >

< EJ : “Aigooo.. Imo, are you sure Yong Yong Oppa really didn’t get married and had a baby?” >

< MrsJ : “Omona! And kept it from us for almost 2 years?!” >

< JR : “Mommy and Daddy?! Really? I didn’t think Yong Yong Oppa was that CHEESY!” >

< GY : “She REALLY sounds so familiar to me..” >

 

“Let’s go get her some food and fix her some milk.. Then we’ll go out for a walk.. Oh, Oppa, you didn’t properly close down your laptop.. Here let me..”, Hyun informed me, as she pushed down the screen of my laptop shut before we went to the next room and started feeding Cherisse some cookies and milk.

 

 

 

Mrs. Jung

“No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no..”, I protested, as soon I heard the girl named ‘Seohyun’ say something about my son’s laptop.

 

“Please don’t close it..!”, pleaded Eun Ji.

 

“Just leave it alone!”, demanded Jin Ri.

 

Click.

 

“She closed it.”, said Sue Ji.

 

“We’re disconnected..”, confirmed Ga Young.

 

“Aishhh!”, we all said together before we started laughing. We moved to the seats around the family room and started chatting about what we just heard.

 

“Imo, WHO was that girl Yong Yong Oppa was talking to? Was that the girl mentioned here in these articles?”, Eun Ji started, looking at the pieces of papers in her hand again.

 

“But according to this one—OMG! She used to be a man?!”, Sue Ji exclaimed, eyes widening, reading another newspaper clipping.

 

“Although, he was handsome, wasn’t he..? Then she must be beautiful as a woman! No wonder Yong Yong Oppa fell for him! Or her! Oi! I’m so confused!”, Jin Ri complained, touching her temples.

 

“You can’t believe everything you read from tabloids, Eonni! Even credible newspapers sometimes have to retract their articles, what more for tabloids! Right, Imo?”, Ga Young commented, who surprisingly has the most sense among the girls, although she’s the youngest.

 

“You’re right, Ga Young-ie.. Yong Yong-ie got mad at me when I asked him about that.. So DO NOT ask him that, if you ever get in touch with him, okay?”, I reminded them.

 

“So the baby—”

 

“Her name’s Cherisse..”, Ga Young supplied.

 

“—right, so Cherisse isn’t really the girl's—”

 

“Seohyun-ssi..”, said Ga Young, interrupting again.

 

“Yah, stop that!”, Sue Ji shouted