Home For Christmas

“You okay?” Min turned her head and saw her father looking at her with concern eyes. “Of course. What makes you think I’m not?” Min asked turning back to the present she was wrapping for a friend. “Usually you would be singing Christmas songs out loud. You’re not even listening to music in here” Min shrugged. “I’m not feeling it yet. I’m sure I’ll be jumping off the walls during the party” Min said, giving him a reassuring smile. Her father shrugged, “If you say so. I’m going to continue cleaning up” Min nodded and taped up the last corner. Christmas season was a joyous time and usually she was the one who enjoyed it the most, but her mind wasn’t on the feast or even the party tomorrow, it was on a particular bassist.

Her boyfriend, Jungshin, had been touring with his band, like bassists do. They were finally getting bigger as the days passed and their schedules just kept getting busier and busier. Min dropped the tape on the present and sighed. She wasn’t upset that he was living his dream, in fact, she had never felt prouder and seeing him so happy made her happy, but it was normal to miss him. Especially after their last chat wasn’t all too pleasant. 

Min shook her head. Don’t think about that. She walked over to the tree and set down the present. Her family was small so instead of just the little bit of them celebrating, her grandmother had decided that celebrating with friends and their families would a lot more joyful and so the tradition of having a grand Christmas party began. 

Min stood over the pile of presents that still needed to be wrapped and groaned, but sat down on the carpet and got to work without complaining. By the time she was finished, her family had already gone to sleep. She checked her phone and saw that it was 10 to 12. “Ugh. I’ll be killed if I leave this here” She mumbled, looking at the trash she left behind. She quickly began to pile everything up “Okay” She put on her coat and boots then grabbed the bag filled with all the excess wrapping paper. She took a deep breath before opening the door. She winced as the cold air nipped her face, but pushed forward and closed the door behind her. “Oh” She stepped back, surprised to see someone quickly getting up from her porch stairs.

Her eyes widened when she realized who it was. “What are you doing here?” Min asked, seeing Jungshin standing at the bottom of the stairs with something behind his back. “I-“ “Didn’t you say you couldn’t make it for Christmas?” Min interrupted. Jungshin cleared his throat and nodded. “Yeah, but I pulled some all nighters to finish all of my recordings so I could be here” Min recalled the last time they talked. 

It was about a week ago and Jungshin had told her there was a chance he couldn’t come for Christmas. That alone wasn’t the reason Min had gotten upset. She understood his schedule, but the way he said was so casual that it seemed like he didn’t care and Min naturally got mad. Not only that, but also the way he wasn’