Mushy. (1/1)

HyunMi. “Yeah. Miss Lee said that they’ll give us time to spend Christmas with our families. Uh—I mean, them.” I shook my head.Kibum approached and stood beside me. “Where are you going to celebrate?”“In the streets. Keke. Just kidding,” I diced the onions. “Oh, I don’t know. just here, maybe. Miss Lee knows of my situation.” I wiped a tear on my eye that was caused by the onion.“Hey, don’t cry! You can celebrate with us!”“Babo, I’m not crying! I was just teary because of this!”“Then do. Celebrate with us. We’re pining to have a guest,” he invited.“’We’?” I gave him a teasing look.Kibum turned rubicund and looked away. “Well, DUH. They want you to come. Especially Taemin. He keeps on saying, ‘Heyyy hyung! Please tell noona to come celebrate with us! I already bought my gift for her!’”I went to the stove, checking on the noodles. “Wow. Didn’t know he could be so thoughtful,” I turned the gas knob. “Aren’t you busy during that? I’ll be happier if I celebrate here.”“Correction. Lonelier. We’ll find time. Besides, we’ll find effort on making your Christmas happy,” he dipped a fork on the cauldron and brought out a strand of the noodles. He puffed air on it, and when it was of tangible heat, he threw it on the wall.“Ya! What’re you doing?”“tsk, tsk.” He shook his head. “It’s not yet cooked. Let’s make the sauce.” Moments later, after everything was cooked, he was twirling his fork on the plate and offered it to me. “Here,”I stared back at him, perplexed.“Do you wanna eat or not?” he asked impatiently.I slowly opened my mouth, and he served the food. I chewed it, savoring the taste, and when I swallowed I mused, “It’s yummy,”“Of ourse. I cooked it, remember?”“Hey, I helped on it too. And I did the noodles!”He rolled his eyes. “Your pasta would be nothing if not for my colossal culinary skills,”“Shut up,” I made a face at him and punched his arm.“Ouch! Hey, my wound!”“OH MY GOSH! I’M SO SORRYYYY!” I gasped, and apologized for so many times I couldn’t remember. Suddenly, I fell into some dismal silence as I stared at his wound. It was still healing. I was the one who caused it, and why I did that was another story—it’s a wound that’s unseen, and never again must be touched.“It’s just this wound that’s left of what happened,” he broke the hush. “Forget about it. you worry too much,” he made me look at his reassuring smile by placing his pointer on my chin, lifting it up. “I don’t mean to interrupt you guys or anything, but…the food’s cooked, yes? We’re more or less dying of starvation here,” Changmin-oppa popped his head in. the resident eating-machine. “We’d be in great bliss if you guys hurry up even just a little bit.” And he disappeared as quick as he showed. Kibum chuckled. “Come on. Let’s go serve this food to them,”  That night “You know, I never thought how you could be so serious when it comes to painting,” I turned at the sound of his voice. We were working on the painting.“Wha-?”“Once you hold the brush, I could hardly make you talk to me. Your eyebrows are having a wrestling, see,” he pointed my head with a brush. “How long have they been together?”“Who?”“Them.”“I said WHO?”“Your eyebrows,” he said provokingly.“AIIIIIISSSHHH.” I wanted to throw at him the mixing plate but I stopped, for if we had another war, we might damage the painting. “Don’t start now, will you? Get me a glass of water downstairs.”“Excuse me?”“I said, get me a glass of water downstairs.”“Don’t want to.”“Come on.”“Nope.”“Go.”“No way.”"I said go."“Kiss me.”“EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!” I was about to assail him but then he ran off.“Hahahahaha! Crosspatch!” he yelled and closed the door with a bang. I heard steps trotting down the stairs. Ugh, really. This guy. I was thinking of a way on how to avenge myself.And bingo. I thought of something superbly ingenious. I closed all the windows, covering them with curtains, and turned off the lights. The room was close to pitch-black, because it was already evening. When I heard him coming up the stairs, I quickly hid behind the door. “HyunMi-ya? Ohh… dangsineun eodimniga?” I heard him settling the glass on a nearby table. “HyunMi?”  321 “BOO!” I boomed from behind the door with a loud stomp on the floor. I just heard the loudest, girliest scream coming from a man ever. “AIIIIIIIISSSSSSSHHHHHHH!” he shrilled as I howled in laughter.“HAHAHHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHHAHHAHAHAH OH MY GOSH. That was so FUN-FUN-FUN! I wanna do it again!” I had to hold on to a chair.“You are SO going to pay for this. Very, very SOON. MARK MY WORDS, MOON HYUNMI,” he intimidated, but I was too ecstatic in my triumph.“Yeah right,” About thirty minutes after that, we were working silently. The atmosphere was still grim, but I didn’t care. For some reason, I was in the very good mood of picking on him. Maybe because I miss him. “Ya,” I called.“WHAT.” In a clearly annoyed voice.“I’ll tell you something. It’s some sort of a secret,” I said, not looking at him as I dappled the brush on the canvas.“Spit it out.”“Have I ever told you that I could stay here even after this?”His mood changed a hundred and eighty degrees. “JEONGMALLO?” there was unmistakable joy in his voice.“Yeah. But I don’t want to.” I stated, teasing him. I am so in the mood to get in his nerves.His mood swung back to its former state. “Door’s that way if you want to leave already. I’ll even help you in packing,”I walked over to him, and tried to pinch his cheek. “Aww, look at you! You’re sulking!”He slapped my hand to prevent it from touching his face. “Aaaaaarrggghhh get your filthy hand off me!”I made a face, dipped my finger on the mixing plate, and put the paint on his face.“WHY YOU—“ I made a run for my life and he started to chase me.“HAHAHAHAHA!”

“EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHH YOU’RE GONNA PAY!”“CATCH ME IF YOU CAAAAN!”“GET BACK HERE!”“ARE YOU KIDDING ME?” He only caught me when he tackle-hugged me, and we landed on the floor with a loud thump. As we rolled, he slapped a handful of blue paint on my face. I was too busy laughing I didn’t mind it hurt.He was lying on his back on the carpet and I was on top of him. We laughed till our faces hurt. People would think we were doing something vulgar, but for me we were just a pair of harmless lunatics.When his laughter stopped he said, “HyunMi-ya,”“Yep?” our faces were so close to each other.“Would you stay if possible?” he put his arm over my back.My face felt like burning. “Hey let me go! I’m heavy!”“I won’t let you go unless you answer me.” He said stoutly.I sighed. “I’ll think about it.”He placed another arm on my back. “Ding! Invalid answer,”“What do you want me to say?” I frowned.“Something between yes or yes,” he chortled cheekily.“Well then, I choose ‘or’.”“No fair!”“You said something between yes OR yes. So I chose ‘or’,” I successfully got up.He sat up and paid me a distasteful look.“Haha. DEFEATED.”He outstretched his arm, telling me to help him up. I did, but when I held his hand he pulled me so hard, I went tumbling down back again only to be caught in an embrace. “If you can stay here…just…please…do,” solemnly his voice chided tenderly on my ear.I pursed my lips. Slowly, oh so slowly, I returned the embrace. “Kibum-ah…you know…but my life’s there, and that’s where my family is. Your life’s here, and you, yourself, belong here…” I stroked his hair, to buy me some time of what to think—words that will be announced, but won’t hurt him. I must say, at times like this, he pleads like a child. “Yes, I have the choice to stay, but, thinking sensibly, I belong there, right?” I pulled out and faced him, resting my forehead on his. “Just sing for me when you do, can you promise me that?”He kept his head hung low, but it was visible that he nodded.“Very good,” I smiled, holding back my tears as I rubbed the paint off his cheek. “Now stop being so cheesy,” Just in time, a knock came on the door. “HyunMi-ssi? Miss Lee said we’ll have dinner at the East Wing,” it was Seongjin’s voice. “Dinner-meeting it is,”“Coming!” I answered back. I stood up first and helped him up. This time, he didn’t yank me back.And for the rest of the night, Kibum was gloomy.  KEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYYYI tossed and rolled on my bed while I kept thinking of what she said. Of course, it’d be greedy and selfish of me if I make her stay. Her sunny smile, contagious laughter, and exasperating, witty verbal counterattacks. Even everything of her. herself. The absence of those things are dawning near, and approaching fast; especially that we talked about was the day after the final exhibit. “Darn it,” I muffled my face with a pillow, as if shielding myself from the world that a tear just slid down my cheek.