Loving You

Fifty Four

Gary inserted the key into the lock and turned it. "Yeobo, I'm back." He shouted as he walked through the front door. There was no response.

He flicked on the light switch but it didn't turn on. Was there a blackout? He wondered. He put his briefcase on the sofa and went to the kitchen. He tried to switch on the lights in there but there was nothing.

He took a quick look at the dining table and noticed that it was empty, which was weird since Jihyo would normally prepare dinner for him if she knew he was going to work till late at night. She would cover it with a net food cover until he come back. But today, the net food cover was just lying flat on the other end of the table.

He remembered that she told him that she will end work at 6pm which means that she should already be back since three hour ago. He took his phone and check through his messages and call logs, wondering if he had accidentally missed out on her message or call but there was none.

"Where can a pregnant lady go to at this hour?" He mumbled to himself.

He pressed his phone against his ear, and went to check the bedroom. In his mind, he was hoping to see her sleeping inside. He gently pushed open the door.

POP.

He shield his head with his arms as  confetti fell all around him.

"Happy birthday, yeobo!" Jihyo held a small cake, with one candle burning and stepped towards him.

He brought his arm down and stared at the cake in her hands. He was so busy with work that he had forgotten that it was his birthday.

"Hurry up and blow the candle before the flame goes off." She said. The flame wavered and though it was their only source of light, he could still see the huge smile on her face.

Finally, he was able to relax. He blew out the flame, and took the cake from her.

***

He checked the circuit box and upon flicking one of the switch, the lights came back on. He walked to the kitchen and this time, the table was filled with a bowl of rice, seaweed soup, some kimchi and anchovies side dishes, and a plate of pork belly with perilla leaves.

It was impossible for her to prepare a meal within ten minutes. He looked around the kitchen, wondering where she kept the food in. Then, he noticed the oven door which was wide opened.

"Yeobo, don't ever not pick up my calls. Do you know how worried I was?" He said as he sat in the chair, and reached for the spoon.

"Mianhae. I wanted to give you a surprise." She gave him a sheepish smile.

Halfway through eating, he suddenly paused, and stared at her. Frowning slightly, he asked, "did you climb up a chair to reach the circuit box?"

She nodded silently.

"Yah!" He shouted, "do you know how dangerous that was? What if something happen? What if you fall, and I'm not there to save you?"

Seeing Gary being so uptight, she couldn't help but to break into a smile even though she knew that he was being serious about it.

"Jihyo-yah, this isn't funny. Something could have really happen, and I might lose the three of you - the babies and you. Don't do that again."

"Arasseo. Stop nagging." She pouted, and went to sit on the sofa. Seconds later, he joined her.

He nudged her gently, "don't be like this." 

"It took me awhile to plan this." She said, while tugging at a loose thread on the hem of her sweater.

With his hands on her shoulders, he turned her towards him. "I love the surprise but if anything happens to you, this surprise would mean nothing to me." He said softly.

"Arasseo. I won't do that again." She mumbled.  

She looked down at her six-month baby bump and stroked it. It was slightly bigger than the average since she was carrying twins. When they first found out about it a month ago, it was a news that they couldn't quite believe. Now, all that was left was to find out the gender of the babies.

She slipped her hand into her pocket and pulled out two tickets. "The last surprise for today," she said as she give it to him.

They were tickets to a baseball match. She knew that Gary has always wanted to watch a match live, and the timing of the final match to be held this weekend couldn't have been better.

"Wow.." His voice trailed off as he stared at the tickets in his hand. He knew exactly how hard it was to get the tickets. They were all sold out within minutes of going on sale. He put the tickets on the table, and looked at her.

"Thanks for the surprise, yeobo." He cupped her face and pressed his lips fully against hers.