Lifetime

Yuletide

With my dad feeling better by Christmas Eve, I assumed that we'd continue on with his preplanned activities. We did for a while, drinking spiked cider and opening our presents a night early. He made a holiday worthy breakfast the next morning while I lounged in snowflake printed pajamas, letting "A Christmas Story" play on repeat through the day. Around noon he got a phone call, taking it in the kitchen since I was pretty focused on the movie despite having seen it every year, returning with giggles that were leftover from the call.

"Jin said we can head over for dinner around three." He reclaimed his seat next to me and stretched his arm around the back of the couch.

"Dinner?" I asked, wondering if they'd planned this without me all along or if it were a spur of the moment decision.

He nodded, laughing at a part of the movie as he split his attention between me and the screen. "Apparently he woke up with the urge to cook and hasn't been able to stop."

I wracked my mind trying to find a way out of attending, but it wasn't like I had friends in Rochester to visit and I'd already watched nearly every Christmas movie available on our streaming services over the past month.

With no way out I found myself dressed in light wash jeans and a chunky cream sweater, next to my dad in an Uber as snow covered scenery passed in the window.

Seokjin's house looked like those I used to circle in my mom's home magazines when I was a kid, dreaming of the perfect kitchen and rooms to dedicate to an office, oversized bath, and books. There wasn't a ding in the road with the closer we got to his neighborhood, houses in soft hues with a backyard view of Bamber Lake.

He lived at the end of the road, our driver in just as much in awe at the home as I was. We pulled into the driveway, leaving a cash tip when we were dropped off at front of the house painted in shades of gray.

"Just wait until you see the inside." My dad grinned, removing his gloves after ringing the doorbell. He'd visited twice before when they first met, Seokjin offering a couple days of fishing on the lake before my dad moved into the city.

The most savory smell wafted from inside when Seokjin opened the door, taking our coats to hang as we stepped into the foyer. I balanced myself with a hand on the wall while I unzipped my boots by the door, unable to imagine getting the hardwood floors dirty.

"I'm glad you could come. It'll probably be another hour or so until dinner. I got carried away." He chuckled, the tips of his ears red with a hint of embarrassment.

I tried remaining expressionless as we moved through a short hallway to the open space of the living room and kitchen, designed with ivory and gray tones that matched the exterior of the house. The chairs appeared untouched and electric fireplace below the TV provided a welcome layer of heat, an instrumental version of "Last Christmas" playing softly in the background through every room.

The kitchen was just as white as the ground outside, with an oversized marble island and bright finishes that currently held bowls and platters of half prepared ingredients. There were two pots heating at a low setting on the stove and Seokjin immediately went back to cooking, stirring one of the concoctions with a wooden spoon while my dad made himself comfortable in one of the barstools at the edge of the island.

There was a fully stocked bar against the wall between the kitchen and living room, white and brown liquors in pretty bottles on a shelf, glasses arranged in see through cabinets and a small refrigerator filled with bottles of wine. I leaned against the counter awkwardly, everything too pristine to touch.

"What's on the menu?" My dad patted his stomach, leaning further toward the island for a look while Seokjin sliced into a cabbage.

"There's a roast in the oven and short ribs on the stove. I've got rice and a pasta dish I wanted to try making. I just need to finish all the vegetables and get a dessert baking while we eat." He chopped with just as much skill as my dad, scraping the dish from a cutting board into another pot before transferring it to the stove.