Horvejkul-Seo Mi Young

My kids, nieces, and nephew almost drowned! And an hour hasn’t even passed yet! Now, we’re losing Cherisse?! This is war! – That’s the ticket! You can do this, Mi Young-ah! Fighting!

 

I looked at my husband and I knew he knew I’m pissed without even saying a word. Every adult in the room was tense while the kids chattered on the floor with the yoo-mohs, who were all upset too with what happened to their wards. The kids were now trying to distract us from going ballistic because of what they did and its consequences by chattering incessantly and noisily.

 

Yong Hwa-yah and Joo Hyun-ah are not losing Cherisse today! Not even over my dead body!

 

I looked at my siblings. They were looking at me, waiting for any instructions. Joo Hyun was still crying quietly beside a shocked-looking Yong Hwa while Cherisse lounged at his lap, oblivious to her surroundings. I looked around the room and then looked pointedly at them, hoping they got what I meant. Yu Ri nodded surreptitiously as she moved, elbowing our cousin In Guk on the way.

 

“Yaaa, I’m hungry.. Is our food here yet?”, she asked, looking at her watch.

 

“Yes, Noona.. We left them in one of the kitchens..”, In Guk answered, going along our charade.

 

“Which kitchen?”, Yoo Na asked, jumping on the bandwagon.

 

“Aigoo! I don’t know which one it was!”, In Guk exclaimed, frowning.

 

“Yah! How can you forget which kitchen it was!”, Yu Ri scolded.

 

“I panicked, Noona! Everybody was screaming to go get towels and blankets when we arrived! And then they all rushed out!”, In Guk reasoned out, while Jong Hyun and Jung Shin nodded their agreement.

 

“Arasseo—”

 

“Which wing was it on—”

 

“And which floor—”

 

“Front or back of the mansion—”

 

“Is it the gold kitchen?”, Manager Oppa asked beside the only man from the children’s services team, catching his attention.

 

Good job, Manager Oppa!

 

“Or maybe the platinum one—”

 

“Must be one of the dirty kitchens—”

 

“Which one? That’s the problem—”

 

“So this mansion have multiple kitchens?”, one of the ladies from the children’s services interjected curiously.

 

Yes, that’s it..

 

“Yes, Ma'am.. Not just kitchens, but dining rooms, living rooms, game rooms, bathrooms, and other rooms as well..”, my husband supplied, smiling charmingly at the ladies who all turned red in the cheeks.

 

He still got it!

 

“Wow..”, one of the ladies whispered in amazement, either amazed at the mansion or my husband, I couldn't tell.

 

Then I saw Min Hyuk nod at our cousin, In Guk, and together they walked up to the ladies, flashing the infamous Seo eye-smiles at them.

 

Watch out, ladies! One is fine, but two?! It’s lethal!

 

“Would you like a tour?”, Min Hyuk asked with his megawatt-smile in place.

 

“Yes, would you like a tour? We’re not very familiar with the mansion yet, but we’ll show you the rooms we’ve discovered so far..”, In Guk added with his equally megawatt-smile plastered on his face.

 

“Su—”

 

“Weren’t you looking for your food?”, the Ahjussi suddenly cut-in before his 3 colleagues could fully answer, making Min Hyuk and In Guk’s eye-smiles flicker for a second.

 

Uh-oh!

 

“Oppa.. May I call you, Oppa?”, Sue Ji asked as she came forward, smiling sweetly.

 

“O-Of co-course!”, the only man from the children’s services team answered nervously as he stood up to his full height and his chest puffed up forward, looking like he’ll agree to anything Sue Ji suggests at this point.

 

Way to go, Sue Ji-ah!

 

“Oppa, you look like you’re a multi-tasker.. Don’t you think we’ll be killing two birds with one stone if we give you a tour while we look for our food?”, Sue Ji asked innocently, batting her eyelashes unnecessarily, making her cousins snicker secretly.

 

“Actually, it’ll be three birds with one stone because we’ll work up our appetite if we walk around the mansion.. By the time we find our food, we’ll be ready to eat.. I don’t think anyone’s hungry now after what just happened, right everyone?”, Eun Ji asked, looking around as we all nodded our agreement.

 

“And we’ll come look, too..”, Jin Ri added, gesturing at Soo Jung and Ga Young, making the Ahjussi’s smile turn into a grin.

 

“Shall we go?”, In Guk asked one of the ladies, offering his arm at her while Min Hyuk and Jong Hyun did the same to the other two. Meanwhile, the 5 girls flocked around the Ahjussi, who looked thrilled with all the attention. Jung Shin led the way as he’s the most familiar with the mansion, discovering rooms when he had nothing to do while Moonie Ahjussi took the rear, making sure there was no straggler behind.

 

“Take your time here, we’ll take care of them..”, he murmured as he passed by.

 

“Thank you, Moonie Ahjussi..”, I sighed before my husband closed the door behind him.

 

I turned around to face my family. The kids were herded by the yoo-mohs on one side of the room with Soo Jung’s baby sleeping soundly in a bassinet while the kids quietly told them again what happened in the beach earlier.

 

“Manager Hyung, why didn’t you tell us they were coming?!”, my husband rounded on Yong Hwa’s Manager in a hushed voice.

 

“I did—”

 

“You did not—”

 

“I did, too—”

 

“You—”

 

“He told us, Noona..”, Yong Hwa interjected quietly, cradling a now sleeping Cherisse in his lap.

 

“Us?”, I asked, looking at Joo Hyun, who only nodded and sighed, looking tired and defeated.

 

“When?”, I asked again, trying to understand my sister’s predicament.

 

“Manager Hyung told us last night—”

 

“You knew since LAST NIGHT and you decided NOT to tell us—”

 

“We didn’t want to add any more problems last night..”, Joo Hyun reasoned out weakly.

 

“You still could have informed us earlier—”

 

“We-We tried.. We tried to tell you earlier but..”, Yong Hwa didn’t finish his sentence because we all knew what happened earlier—we distracted them from all the interrogation that we did and then with what happened with the kids afterwards.

 

“And we didn’t know when they’d turn up, Noona—”

 

“Yes, they just said they’re on their way.. We didn’t know if they were already here in Jeju or if they’re still in Seoul.. And then this morning, I got an anonymous call telling me to go to the hotel we stayed in when we first arrived in the island.. I thought we just left something there so I went to get it, but when I arrived I was shocked when they met me in the lobby! They wouldn’t let me call or text you so I couldn’t warn you.. But then I thought Yong Hwa-yah and Seohyun-ssi must have already told you by the time we get here since I reminded Yong Hwa-yah on my way to the hotel earlier..”, Manager Oppa informed us in a sad voice.

 

“If you just had warned us! This day could have turned out differently if we knew they were coming unannounced! We would have been more careful! More mindful because we’d be in our toes, never knowing when they’ll actually turn up!”, I hissed, trying to keep it down, but unable to stop myself from being angry while I felt my husband walk up behind me and take my hand in his, calming me a little.

 

“We could have saved ourselves the agony that we all went through today! We almost lost the kids.. My son..”, I faltered while Yong Hwa flinched as if in pain as I remembered his outburst a while ago. We were just outside the room while the kids talked to the children’s services team and the others gave privacy to Yong Hwa and Joo Hyun. The door was slightly ajar and we all heard what he said—about how he didn’t know how he’d decide on whom to save first and who dies.

 

Do you know how hard it was to hear that? To know your son could have died because he was the last one he could reach, but knowing he had no choice.. I still couldn’t fathom the idea of having to make that decision on which kid lives and which kid dies..

 

We all started crying when we heard that. I saw my husband turn away and sob like a baby. I saw my brother, cousin, and brothers-in-law wipe tears from their eyes for the very first time, gone were the goofy, mischievous guys as if they never existed.

 

“And now we’re at risk of losing Ch-Cherisse..”, my voice cracked, I turned to rest my forehead on my husband’s chest while my tears threatened to spill.

 

“Noooo..”, Joo Hyun sobbed quietly on Yong Hwa’s shoulders as he tried to keep his tears at bay knowing that he had to be strong for her.

 

“Stop crying, Joo Hyun-ah! We haven’t lost yet. They are not leaving this mansion with Cherisse. I will not allow it. I haven’t lost a case yet and I’ll be damned if I lose now with my own sister’s case, no less! If you just had informed us or, at the very least, me earlier, I could have prepared for this. Now I have to wing it!”, I snapped as I kept my anger at bay and my tears in check because I had to be in my lawyer mode right now and lawyers don’t cry, they win.

 

“Honey, I need my bag—”

 

“I’ll go get it—”

 

“What else do you need, Eonni?”, Yu Ri asked while everyone else waited for further instructions.

 

“I need you and Chang Sun-ah to prepare the table.. We’ll eat first before we go through this.. That’ll buy me more time—”

 

“Arasseoyo—”

 

“Yong Hwa-yah, Joo Hyun-ah, take Cherisse with you and go upstairs.. We won’t be able to start if you’re not here in case they come back soon.. We’ll tell them Cherisse is asleep and Yong Hwa-yah’s not feeling well.. Don’t come down ‘til we get you, got it?”, I instructed.

 

“Yes, Noona/Eonni..”, they answered softly, looking hopeful for the first time.

 

“Yoo Na-yah, I need pens and papers—”

 

“I’ll get it—”

 

“Seung Gi-ah, call your colleagues.. I need to talk to a specialist—”

 

“Arasseoyo, Noona—”

 

“Manager Oppa, give me names and numbers of the most notorious paparazzi you know—”

 

“I can do that!”, he snapped at attention before fishing out 3 cell-phones from his pockets and started perusing them.

 

I sat myself on the floor in front of the massive coffee table just as my husband and Yoo Na came back with the things I asked for, ready to assist me with anything I needed done.

 

Joo Hyun-ie is not losing her daughter.. Not when I almost lost my son!

 

 

 

Jung Yong Hwa

Why does it have to be now..? We can’t lose Cherisse.. At least, not yet..

 

“I’ll take Cherisse, Yong Hwa-yah..”, Yoo Na Noona cut into my thoughts as she carefully lifted Cherisse from my arms.

 

I suddenly felt bereft and helpless. All I could do was stare at my empty arms.

 

Is this how it’s going to feel when she leaves us..? How am I supposed to survive this..?

 

“Oppa..”, I felt Hyun’s warm hands encircle my right arm as she helped me up, steadying me on my feet.

 

She stared up at me with concern when I looked at her as the warmth of her hands spread through me like fire, reviving my heart that had gone cold.

 

I still have Hyun.. I’m not going through this alone.. And we’re not going through this at all if I can help it! I won’t let them take Cherisse away from Hyun..

 

“Are you okay, Oppa? Still dizzy?”, Hyun asked worriedly as she looked at me up and down while Yoo Na Noona waited for us by the door.

 

“I-I’m okay now, Hyun..”, I answered as I took a tentative step forward. My knee wobbled a little so Hyun had to help me walk back to our room.

 

Yoo Na Noona and Hyun placed Cherisse in the middle of the bed when we arrived at our bedroom, then put pillows around her as I sat on the floor against the cabinet housing the bedroom TV, facing the foot of the bed.

 

“Okay, she’s all set.. Just wait here, arasseo? We’ll send someone up to get you 3 when it’s time..”, Yoo Na Noona reminded us before she went for the door.

 

“Thanks, Noona/Eonni..”, we whispered back.

 

I looked up and found Hyun making sure Cherisse was comfortable, softly brushing her hair away from her face as she gazed at her with sad eyes. Looking at Hyun, I remembered the conversation we had the other day when we were going up the stairs after watching the sunrise from the beach and I knew what I had to do.

 

I have to warn her.. I don’t want her to get surprised when I bring it up later.. I need her to understand why I’ve decided to do this..

 

“Hyun? Can we talk?”, I asked in a hushed voice as I looked at her. She nodded as she made her way towards me, taking a spare blanket with her.

 

As she sat quietly beside me, she spread the blanket over us, making sure I was covered.

 

I think she’s still worried I’m still cold.. Oh, Hyun..

 

“What is it, Oppa?”, she asked in a hoarse, hushed voice.

 

I turned to look at her and all I could see was her puffy eyes, making me waver with my decision to warn her about what I’m planning to do.

 

I don’t want to make her cry anymore.. – But you owe her the truth.. She needs to know now.. You can’t just drop it later, she’ll feel abandoned.. – But look at her.. – I know, but you have to do this.. You owe it to her.. – Arasseo..

 

“Hyun, I—I have to tell you something.. But promise me, you’ll listen to me first.. Promise me, you’ll keep calm and try to see it in my perspective so you’d understand.. Do you promise?”, I asked, unable to look at her anymore.

 

“I promise..”, she whispered.

 

“Hyun, if Mi Young Noona can’t win this for us—”

 

“Knock on wood—”

 

“—I’m going to ask the children’s services officials to let Cherisse stay with you and I’ll stay away—”

 

“But—”

 

“Wait, you promised..”, I reminded her as her big eyes stared at me, more tears threatening to spill. When she stayed quiet I continued, “It’s the only way for Cherisse to survive this.. This is about her, not you or me or us.. I’d rather you have her than her not having any of us at all.. Yes, she will look for me and she will cry, but your family’s still here, your nieces and nephews can distract her and she’s not so clingy when she’s happy..”

 

“Hyun, I want you to know this.. I want you to understand WHY I’m doing this.. I’m NOT abandoning you with Cherisse.. If I could, I’d stay with you 24/7, 365 days a year, 366 if it’s leap year.. Honest. I don’t want you think that I’m sick of you or Cherisse.. I know you’re thinking about it now.. You think I’m probably tired of you and taking care of Cherisse by now and I’m making my way out while an opportunity is presenting itself, aren’t you? Don’t you lie, Seo Joo Hyun.. I can see the gears in your mind working a mile a minute..”, I told her as I looked at her straight in the eye, hoping to make our conversation lighter before we both burst out crying.

 

She smiled sadly at me and to my surprise hugged me so tight I thought I was back in the water, having delirious hallucinations again.

 

“How are we supposed to go through the day without you, Yong Oppa?”, she asked sadly in a muffled voice against my shoulder as I regained from my shock.

 

“To be honest, I—I don’t know how I’ll survive without you two beside me, Hyun..”, I confessed as tears started falling from my eyes, realizing that this could be my last day with them—with her.

 

I can’t go through this.. I don’t want to go through this.. – But you must and you will.. For them..

 

“Oppa, is there no other way? Maybe we can bribe them, I don’t care how much, just please stay with us..”, she pleaded as she looked at me.

 

“I—I wish we could, Hyun, I wish we could.. But we have to set an example for the kids, for Cherisse.. And you—you know bribery is against the law.. It’ll be a huge scandal if it leaks out.. Cherisse might get taken away from the both of us for good and I—I  don’t think she’ll be able to take it without something going wrong with her..”, I reasoned out and I knew she knew that what she suggested was wrong, but only said it out of desperation.

 

“Oppa, I—I c-can’t do this..”, she cried, hugging her knees in the process while all I could do was tap her gently on the back.

 

“Shhh.. It’ll be alright, Hyun.. You’ll see.. Everything will turn out alright..”, I said trying to convince her, but knowing that I, myself, wasn’t convinced.

 

Please, God, let it be alright..

 

 

 

Seo In Guk

Where to now?! We’ve covered most of the unlocked rooms.. Maybe we could persuade them to take a swim on the indoor pool.. Will they get mad if I push them— – Yah! Don’t go too far! We need them to like us! – Arasseo..

 

RRRRRRRRRRRRR  RRRRRRRRRRRRR

 

 

“Is everyone hungry? I was told our food’s ready..”, I announced, flashing my eye-smile at the children’s services Ahjummas admiring the magnificent indoor pool we were in.

 

“Oppa, I guess we can’t go swimming just yet—”

 

“Yah, you asked them to go swimming with you—”

 

“I was just—”

 

“Did you forget that we’re here on an official business—”

 

“I didn’t! I was just—”

 

“We were the ones who asked him, Ma’am.. He actually turned us down.. We didn’t mean to get him in trouble..”, Sue Ji interjected, standing up for the only man among the four children’s services representatives.

 

“I was going to ask you beautiful ladies if you’d like to take a dip, too, actually..”, I supplied, smiling at the Ahjummas.

 

“Really? Okay—”

 

“I would reeaaaaalllllly like that—”

 

“See? They want to go, too—”

 

“Yah, yah—”

 

“But since our food’s ready, we should get back now.. We ordered a lot of food!”, I cut in before our guests get into a fight and we lose their good side.

 

I took the elbow of the head representative while Jong Hyun and Jung Shin did the same to the 2 other Ahjummas. The girls once again surrounded the Ahjussi while Min Hyuk took the lead and showed us the way flashing his own eye-smile all the way back.

 

We were all chattering amongst small groups as we walked but when we got to the dining hall, we all went quiet when we saw Mi Young Noona looking so grim. Her lips was so tight shut that it’s almost white and in one line.

 

She’s really pissed! Scary!

 

“Hello again.. I hope you liked the tour.. I apologize if they were too loud—”

 

“No, not at all.. They were really very accommodating, making our tour of this magnificent mansion very fun.. Thank you very much for that.. Now if we could talk about—”

 

“Excuse me.. I’m sorry to cut in, but we haven’t really had lunch yet and it’s almost 4pm.. I’m sure we’re all hungry..”, Yu Ri Noona interjected swiftly when the head representative showed the desire to talk about their task at hand.

 

“Actually, we haven’t really had a proper lunch ourselves, what with all our running around and people asking to see us—”

 

Really? What people? I thought Cherisse is their only case here.. I guess not..

 

“Of course, you are more than welcome to join us.. We won’t have it any other way, actually.. Just forgive us if we just ordered the food and didn’t actually cook it ourselves.. I hope you find the ones we ordered appetizing..”, I heard Yu Ri Noona apologize and explain while we all nodded.

 

“Oh, thank you very much.. That’s very gracious of you.. We’re not picky eaters, I’m sure we’ll love the food you ordered..”, one of the Ahjummas quipped, smiling gratefully.

 

RRRRRRRRRRRR   RRRRRRRRRRRR

 

A seat plan?

 

I looked around and I realized everyone, aside from our 4 guests, received a text message from my eldest cousin-in-law because they were trying to figure out surreptitiously their seat around the massive dining table.

 

“We have the food in a buffet style since there’s so many of us.. It’ll be too tiresome to pass around dishes after dishes..”, Chang Sun Hyung explained as he directed our guests to where the food were arranged in a long side-table apart from the actual dining table.

 

“Ah, I see.. That’s a good idea.. Whoa! These look delicious!”, the tallest Ahjumma exclaimed, clapping her hand together as if she couldn’t wait to eat.

 

Who can?! I’m salivating now! – Ewwwww.. – Yah!

 

“Please go ahead and serve yourselves.. The drinks are here, too..”, Yoo Na Noona encouraged, smiling warmly.

 

At the next few minutes, we all busied ourselves piling our plates with different kinds of food that all you could hear was the clang of metallic spoons against ceramic plates.

 

“Please have a seat..”, I heard Nich Khun Hyungnim say after a few more minutes, signaling everyone to move towards the dining table. Like clockwork, we all took our intended seats which we now know by heart. Not to confuse or give our guests an inkling on what we were doing, we started giving them an excuse to sit next to us or give us the seat they were taking if they’re not supposed to be there because it’s either near the door or the window and in Jong Hyun’s case just completely ignore the Ahjussi, take his seat, and proceeded to stuff his face.

 

Cham! Good thing Sue Ji-ah was there to distract and charm him! Oh, Jong Hyun-ah!

 

When our guests were seated, I became conscious of the fact that they were all in one side of the dining table, facing the buffet and the separate round table intended for the kids.

 

“Ummm Excuse me? Aren’t Yong Hwa-ssi, Seohyun-ssi, and Cherisse joining us? I hope they’re alright..”, the head representative asked Mi Young Noona curiously, who just sat down directly in front of us after taking care of her kids’ meals.

 

“Oh, they’re fine, Ma’am.. They’re just waiting for Cherisse to wake up from her nap when I texted them earlier.. I’m sure they’re on their way down now..”, Mi Young Noona answered and I couldn’t help but notice a twinkle in her eyes as if she’s up to something.

 

Joo Hyun-ie and Yong Hwa-yah didn’t run off with Cherisse, did they?! – I’m sure they didn’t.. – Why? I would! – Aishhh! Cham!

 

“Oh, here they are now—”

 

“Are you alright, Yong Hwa-yah—”

 

“I’m fine, Hyungnim.. I’m fine, guys.. Just eat..”, he answered and then turned towards his cousins to assure them. They were all looking worriedly at him while Joo Hyun stayed close to his side carrying Cherisse in her arms.

 

Poor Joo Hyun-ie.. She looks so miserable..

 

“We apologize for being late.. Cherisse enjoyed her nap too much.. Please enjoy your meal..”, Yong Hwa bowed followed by Joo Hyun, apologizing to the children’s services representatives who all bowed