19 || h.hj

33: the mother

"My mother is coming home tonight," Seoyun said over breakfast to Felix.

"How long is she planning on staying and how many maids are we expecting at the house?" Felix said.

"I'm not sure, but expect a lot to show up. You know how much she doesn't like the idea of us living by ourselves," she said.

"I'm still surprised that she let you. She didn't even let Haeun go without her maids and guards," Felix pointed out. Her mother was very protective of her children. She cared for them the only way she knew how to: she hired people to care for them in her place. Given her and her husband's occupations, time for their children was very limited and rare, thus resulting in the Park siblings constantly in the hands of the caretakers.

"My dad knows how much living independently means to all of us so it didn't take much to convince him and my mother listens to him so, in the end, she let us," she recalled all the begging it took.

"Both your parents scare me a little bit, to be honest," Felix admitted as he got up to wash his plate.

"You're not the only one," she followed behind him to wash her own.

"I can't imagine how Hyunjin must have felt when he met them," Felix grabbed the plate from her hands and washed it, she thanked him silently then leaned on the counter next to him.

"He seemed fine when they finished, they even invited him to dinner," she said.

"Did you ask?" He said and she looked at him confused, "did you ask him what he thinks of your parents?"

"Not directly, but I've implied it before," she answered.

"So you've never asked him. Instead of delaying it any longer why not invite him to greet your mom," he suggested. It wasn't a bad idea, but it was a scary one. She was never fond of the idea of mixing her personal relationships with her family, and Hyunjin was the same.

"I'll think about it," she said the left the room.

"You can't always avoid your problems by running away like this Seoyun," Felix shouted.

"I'm not running away," she was. But she wasn't running away by herself anymore, she had someone to run to now. She had Hyunjin. At the sound of her call for help, Hyunjin came running to her side without missing a beat.

"Hi baby," Hyunjin opened the door to her room.

"I missed you," she pulled him into a hug and dug her face into his stomach.

"I saw you yesterday," he pets her head softly, "but I missed you too, stupid."

"You're stupid," she looked up at him then pulled him onto the bed next to her.

"You're being oddly clingy today, not that I'm complaining," he said as he stroked her hair while she laid in his arms.
"My mom is coming back today," she said.

"That's exciting, how long is she staying for this time?" He asked. He knew about her mother's frequent short trips back to Korea and how little time she actually got to spend with her mother during these trips.

"A few days I think, there's a merger happening with one of our sub-companies and she has to be there for the conference and meetings," she explained.

"I guess she'll be kept busy, huh," he said.

"When she has time, would you like to greet her?" She asked nervously.

"You sound hesitant in asking, are you sure you want me to?"

"Yes, I'm sure. You're someone I find really special and I care about you so much so I want you to have a special place in my family," her words hit harder to him than he expected. He was well aware of how much she separated her life with him and her life with her family, now she was finally letting him in.

"Then, if you'll have me, I'd like to go meet up with your mom with you," he smiled to himself.

"I'd feel so much better with you by my side," she hugged him tighter, which made Hyunjin giggle on how cute he found her cuddled next to him.

The feelings he had for her only grew each second he spent with her. To him, their time spent together felt exciting and comforting even when they would just lie in each other's arms as they did. The more sides of her that he got to see the harder he fell for her. Little bits of her that only he would see because it was only for him. At that point, he knew he was in love with her. He loved the way she cared for him and how she cared for others in her own way. He loved that she would give him an extra squeeze before she would let go when hugging him. He loved that she was there to keep everything calm whenever life would be too hectic from his busy life. He loved that she was always there to support him and be able to give insightful advice on anything he did and wanted to do. He loved her.

Hyunjin wasn't sure when he realized that he had already fallen, but he knew he had jumped into her without hesitation from the moment he first told her that he liked her.

She had told him that they were going to have dinner prepared at their house tonight made by their mother's chef and maids. Seoyun's mother was in no position to oppose Hyunjin being invited, the mother herself was quite intrigued by Hyunjin and their relationship as a whole, both as a mother and an investor.

Since this wasn't their first time meeting, it added far more pressure than he expected. There was no longer any space for fake formalities or awkwardness.

"Are you worried? You look worried," she ran her hands on his chest and neck.

"No, yeah, your mom makes me nervous," he admitted with a slight smile.

"Better that than scared, right? I don't wish for you to fear my family, they are who I am, and I don't want you to fear me," she explained calmly. Hyunjin didn't really understand what she had meant and would fail to understand for a long time after that, but he would one day. "Why don't we go inside and wait for her?"

"Who else is coming?" Hyunjin asked.

"Just Haeun. Yongbok is with a tutor to help him with his studies, some graduate from NSU*," she answered as she played with his fingers to pass time. Ever since they realized that there wasn't much time left till they all had to leave and become adults, Hyunjin and Seoyun hadn't left each other's side. Their obsession with each other only grew knowing the risk of how much it would hurt having to leave each other.

"I've never seen this place look so full," Hyunjin looked around her house with maids running around to prepare for her mother's arrival.

"It's like this whenever she comes home," she rested her hand on his thigh.

"Is she staying here for the night?" He leaned his head on her shoulder. She shook her head while she continued to trace the lines on his palm. "What about Yongbok?" He leaned forward to her neck, his nose then lips brushing on her skin, then to just tease her a bit more he pecked her neck.

"What do you think you're doing?" she hardened her grip on his thigh.

"Asking questions, is there something wrong?" He pecked the skin bellow her ear.

"My mom is coming soon," she said.

"I know," he kissed her jaw.

"Then you should stop," she turned her head to meet his lips.

Right before their lips touched he pulled away then sat straight into his seat and said, "then we'll continue this later, after dinner," he smirked.

"I hate you," she said, flushed and frustrated.

The large doors suddenly opened with a loud thud, it was her mother. Groups of security guards and maids flowed from the door to form a line then, with the clinks of her heels, her mother emerged from the crowd. The two stood up to greet her respectfully with a bow.

"Hyunjin, it's nice to meet you again," her mother smiled.

"Likewise, Mrs. Park. The honor is mine," He bowed his head again.

"Don't be so formal, it's not like we're at a business meeting, dear," she pets his back lightly then took her seat at the head of the table. "Let's chat while waiting for your sister, shall we?" She laced her fingers together then stared at them both.

The only thing left they could do was hope that the dinner would end well.

~
SNU* - Seoul National University