a song of ice and fire // jakehoon

twee en dertig ;

"You truly have a wonderful, warm home."

Mrs Sim was smiling brightly at the older woman before her. "Hyuna prides herself in her creative mind, and did most of the interior design herself. The house had been renovated before, so it wasn't too much of a difficulty."

"Your son," Mrs Park began, "Jake, was it… he seems like a lovely boy. He and Sunghoon are quite close in age, aren't they?"

"A few weeks apart, actually," Jake's mother nodded. "It's rare to see soulmates that are actually close in age."

"He looks smart too."

Mrs Sim nodded proudly. "Before coming to Korea, he was top in his class in physics. He played soccer too, but school wasn't for him. While he was quite exceptional in school, he was very unhappy, so we allowed him to stay home after high school. We'll support him for as long as he wants, because we trust him. He actually helps Hyuna with her online store with designs and such. They're a lovely pair."

Mrs Park hummed, swirling her wine ever so slightly before taking a sip. It was recently made — so clearly this is the wine they open with short-term guests, and not the expensive wine they drink alone. "There's nothing more I want than for Sunghoon to finally be happy. He's softer than he seems, apparently, and really seems to love you son. I can't get in the way of that, because he finally achieved happiness — something we couldn't give him."

"I always say that you shouldn't have children if you're just going to model them with your own standards," Mrs Sim smiled. "They're human, and are allowed to form their own opinions and beliefs. Your kids will always turn out different from what you hoped, because you gave them the ability to learn for themselves. That's why my children are happy — because I let them mould their lives however they want."

The other brunette woman sighed softly, putting her wine down. "I wonder if I've been a terrible parent all along. Yeji is the only one of warmth in our family, and I think I took advantage of it by pressing on about school and such. I knew she'd take it well, but… maybe I should be less strict on my children."

"In the end, it'll make you much happier too."

•

"Oh, Jaein was the most beautiful yet the most annoying girl at school." Mr Park immediately laughed when Mr Sim began griping about his wife. "She was all over the place and was friends with almost everyone. Totally not my type, really. But things changed when we met."

"Oh, you met at school?" Mr Park asked. "Yunhwa and I met during our college years and had kids pretty late."

"Oh, I was about 19 when I met Jaein," Mr Sim smiled. "I was just about to graduate for college when we met, and I told her to wait for me. Three years later, we met at my college and had our first child together — Hyuna. Much later, we had Jake. We were still in Australia back then. Jaein is simply the Korean name she chose, because she's Australian, actually."

"Oh, what's her name?"

"Janet."

"Oh, what a beautiful name."

"Our kids are up in Australia for a bit, attending international schools as Koreans Jaeyoon and Hyuna — not Jake and Jane," Mr Sim continued. "During my college years, I auditioned for some companies as a singer, made it onto SM Entertainment, and I was a singer until some years back to become a family man. I work for KBS from home right now, so we're quite well off."

"My, you're a singer," Mr Park hummed, turning to face him fully. "What kind of music? Trot?"

"Unfortunately, not," Mr Sim laughed. "Sim Changmin — MAX, as the younger generation might know me. I was in TVXQ."

"Goodness gracious, my sister loves you," Mr Park laughed, smacking Mr Sim's back. "Make sure to give your autograph, and I might leave Sunghoon here." He sighed after retracting his hand, moving to pick up his bottle of beer and hold it between his frail fingers. "Sunghoon is my only son — we want the best for him, truly. If he needs your son to be happy, then I don't think we can refute that."

Mr Sim smiled, nodding his head. "Soulmates are a wonderful thing — no matter how hard you try to pull them apart. Something tells me Jake and Sunghoon will never be pulled apart."

•

"Happy birthday, son."

Sunghoon eyed the gift wrapped ever so neatly in his mother's hands, a frown decorating his handsome features. "What's this…?"

"It's a little parting gift, if you will — as well as an early birthday present," Mr Park said. "We're glad you found your warmth, and we have no right to pull you and Jake apart. We'll take the house off the market, so you two can live happily for a bit longer."

Jake felt the cold within from before rush with warmth as Sunghoon's eyes filled with tears. "You will…?"

"Of course," Mrs Park smiled. "We want you to be happy, Sunghoon — and Jake makes you happy, doesn't he?"

Sunghoon smiled at the boy beside him, putting the heads together for a moment. "He definitely does."

"Thank you for the lovely evening, you were excellent hosts," Mr Park smiled at Jake's parents. "I'm sorry we couldn't be here for your birthday, son. We'll try for next year, or even come during Christmas season. For now, we're quite busy." He put a hand on Sunghoon's shoulder with a smile. "Cheer up, okay? Stay happy with your soulmate, and I'm sure you'll be just fine."

"We'll be off now," Mrs Park announced, handing the gift to Sunghoon. Everyone bowed to one another as the Park family, excluding Sunghoon, began leaving the house.

But Yeji turned around, looking at Jake in the eye. "Jake oppa… stay strong. For each other, okay?" She smiled as Jake frowned, and quickly bowed before following her parents. Jake and Sunghoon looked at one another in confusion as Mrs Sim closed the door behind them.

"I'm using the toaster oven."

"Ah, Hyuna, I wanted to use it first!"

Sunghoon looked at the gift in his hands with confusion, seeing a little 'open tomorrow' written on the brown and white gingham plaid wrapping in black Sharpie. He followed the note's instruction, deciding to delay opening the small rectangular object until the next day.

"Sunghoon," Mr Sim called out, "come help me with the light in the corridor. I need your assistance."

And just like that, their lives were back to normal.

[ early update because ily and it's my birthday tomorrow :D ]

[ — ERICVERSE ]