Chapter 4: Dae-Hwan's First Rejection

A.N.: Have a great week everybody. Thanks for the continuous support and love. Have you greeted "Hi" to your neighbors today?

Disclaimer: I don't own these BOF characters, other than the new ones.

The main characters and F4 children:

So Yi Jeong and Chu Ga Eul's children: So Dae-Hyun, So Jae Hwa, So Dae-Jung, So Dae-Hwan, So Jae Eun and So Jae Ji. Deceased/Miscarried: So Dae-Ho.

Endearment: Dae-Hyun – Baby (until 7 years old), Jae Hwa – Darling, Dae-Jung – Baby (until Middle School), Dae-Hwan – Hwannie/Sweetheart, Jae Eun – Eunnie/Sweetheart, Jae Ji – Precious, Dae-Ho - Precious.

Song Woo Bin and Ha Jae Kyung's children: Song Eun-Kyung and Song Won-Bin.

Gu Jun Pyo and Geum Jan Di's children: Gu Jung-Hee, Gu Jung-Hwa and Gu Jee Ha.

Yoon Ji Hoo and Yoong Ha Eun's son: Yoon Joo-Won

Published: 11 April 2017 (my time)

"Hwannie, Sweetheart? May Omma come in?"

Ga Eul softly knocked on her third son's bedroom door. Dae-Hwan had his own bedroom now that he was older. Dae-Jung's bedroom was on the opposite.

A few seconds later the door opened. The 14-year-old held the door open for Omma to enter, his head lowered. Ga Eul stepped in but with a worried expression. Dae-Hwan had been quiet for three days now and he had skipped dinner for the said three days.

"Hey Dae-Jungie, Noona can't see. Move a bit."

"No Noona. Now Dae-Jung can't see."

"Move, you two."

Ga Eul turned around to see her three elder children pushing and nudging each other near Dae-Jung's door. They were trying to see and listen to Omma's conversation with Dae-Hwan.

The two youngest So's daughters Jae Eun and Jae Ji were at Jun Pyo and Jan Di's place to play with the Gu's daughter Jee Ha. Won-Bin (Woo Bin and Jae Kyung's son) and Joo-Won (Ji Hoo and Ha Eun's son) were also there. Yi Jeong brought along the two girls to the Gu's Mansion since the F4 had some things to discuss.

Ga Eul frowned at the three of them and closed the door.

"Hyung, this is all Hyung's fault."

"Yeah, Oppa. Now we can't listen to Omma and Hwannie."

"How is it Oppa's fault? You two are the noisy ones."

"Oppa!" "Hyung!"

They were still bickering on who was at fault. But they were worried about Dae-Hwan too. Dae-Jung, being the closest to Dae-Hwan did not manage to make the latter speak out his problem. Usually, Dae-Hwan would tell him everything, but not these past three days. He was puzzled.

He asked Dae-Hyun Hyung to help. Being the eldest brother, Dae-Hwan had high respect towards him and would listen to him. But he, too, was not successful this time. So the boys asked Jae Hwa Noona to try. Jae Hwa was the second closest to Dae-Hwan.

Jae Hwa started their conversations about a new photography contest from an online website. That got the boy's attention. They discussed on the theme and how he could try new photography techniques (to them at least) that could incite the judges' attention. Everything went well until Jae Hwa asked the golden question "Hwannie, is there something bothering Hwannie?" and he became quiet. He just shook his head.

Ga Eul and Yi Jeong did notice the change in their youngest son. They were worried as well. They discussed Dae-Hwan during their usual night talks. Ga Eul told Yi Jeong that she was going to have that talk with Dae-Hwan for Dae-Hwan was, very close to her. It was not like Dae-Hwan to be like this.

Ga Eul shook her head. The three siblings were too old for spying, but she knew that they were just curious and as worried as she and her husband were about Dae-Hwan.

Dae-Hwan followed Ga Eul to his study table. She lovingly smiled at her third born son and asked him to sit down. The boy gave Omma a small smile and sat next to Omma. Ga Eul then brought up a hand to gently caress the boy's cheek but she was surprised as she saw how he was holding his tears.

"Sweetheart."

Dae-Hwan looked at her. "Yes, Omma."

"It's been three days. No dinner? Is everything alright?"

Dae-Hwan had expected the question since his siblings had been asking him the same one. He hesitated at first, then nodded, but quickly shook his head. Ga Eul leaned back. Her eyes were saying that she wanted to know which correct answer was it.

"Sweetheart?"

"Omma…" there was sadness in his voice that startled Ga Eul. She held his hands.

Dae-Hwan looked down to his lap.

"Omma…"

"Yes, Sweetheart."

"Do Omma think Hwannie am ugly?"

Ga Eul nearly fell from her chair.

"What?"

"Hwannie am ugly right, Omma?" The boy looked at his mother, tears were already brimming in his eyes.

Ga Eul quickly embraced her son. Why was he asking this? Why did he think that he was ugly? Who told him that he was ugly?

"Oh Sweetheart, Sweetheart. Sweetheart are not ugly and are never ugly."

She leaned back and held her son's shoulders.

"Sweetheart, look at Omma."

The boy slowly lifted his head.

"Where does this come from, Sweetheart?"

"Hwannie am ugly because Hwannie am fat, is that right, Omma?"

"Sweetheart!" Ga Eul vigorously shook her head. "No!"

Yes, Dae-Hwan was on the heavier side when compared to his hyungs, Dae-Hyun and Dae-Jung. He was the chubbiest one since they were little. Ga Eul attributed the trait from her father, but that did not mean her son was ugly.

Yi Jeong once voiced out his concern about Dae-Hwan's weight, but Ga Eul assured him that as he grew older and reached puberty, plus with the physical activities and sports at school, he would get thinner. Her uncles were real life examples.

However, Ga Eul and Yi Jeong made sure that the family ate healthy and balanced food but sometimes they allowed the children to splurge on cakes and cookies and sweet things, especially on their birthdays. The children, were, still children. Furthermore, the children got their sweet tooth from her. She loved cakes and cookies.

"Is that why Sweetheart skipped dinner? And Omma noticed that Sweetheart took little at breakfasts too. Are Sweetheart on diet?"

The boy slowly nodded.

"Oh, Sweetheart." Ga Eul hugged him again.

"Who told Sweetheart that Sweetheart are ugly? Let Omma go and see this person and let Omma tell this person that Omma's Sweetheart are not ugly."

"Omma…" Dae-Hwan protested.

"No. Sweetheart need to tell Omma. Omma don't believe that Sweetheart suddenly thought of this. Surely someone said this horrible thing to Sweetheart."

Crimson hues blushed his cheeks.

"Omma, she's not horrible."

"Omma didn't say that the person is horrible. Omma… wait… what? Sweetheart, it was a girl?"

His cheeks went redder if that was even possible.

Ga Eul did not know what to feel more: (i) relieved that Dae-Hwan's problem was not a serious health condition or that he was physically bullied in school or other threatening ones, or (ii) angry that someone had called her son ugly to the extent that he felt sad and took decision that could harm himself. She then decided on both.

"Who is she? Omma still want to talk to her. It's not nice to say that someone is ugly and Sweetheart are not ugly. Sweetheart are handsome like Appa. Just look at those pictures." Ga Eul pointed to the family pictures on one of the walls.

"Ommaaa…."

"It's true and no, Omma am not biased because Sweetheart are Omma's son, but Sweetheart are not ugly, and who has the right to tell a person that he or she is ugly? Everybody is beautiful, in his or her own way."

Ga Eul was getting angry.

"Ommaaaa…"

"Now tell Omma what really happened. Everybody is worried because Sweetheart are never like this."

"Hwannie… Hwannie am embarrassed." Dae-Hwan lowered his head again.

"Do Sweetheart want to talk to Appa?" Ga Eul began to guess and understand what had happened but she wanted to hear it from the boy.

"Or to Hyungs or Noona?"

Dae-Hwan slowly shook his head.

Ga Eul knew that she should not force Dae-Hwan from sharing his story but she really wanted to know. She did not like that someone had said such thing to her son, and that made him did what he did that worried everybody in the family.

Dae-Hwan was still deliberating on what to do or say.

"Is this girl someone whom Sweetheart like?" Ga Eul tried her luck. She was getting a little impatient.

Dae-Hwan immediately looked up at Omma, his eyes a little wider and his cheeks went crimson again.

Ga Eul smiled at her son.

"Did Sweetheart tell her that Sweetheart like her?"

Dae-Hwan's eyes went wider and his mouth opened.

"But she rejected Omma's sweet boy." Ga Eul pouted.

"And she harshly said Omma's Sweetheart are ugly?" her eyes were sad.

Dae-Hwan lowered his head again. Ga Eul could see that he was hurt. She put an arm around his shoulder and patted.

"Omma am sorry Sweetheart. Omma think that was not nice of her."

"Omma… but Hwannie like her. She's the prettiest girl in class."

Ga Eul sighed and straightened her back. She took the young boy's hands.

"Sweetheart, look at Omma."

"Is that the only reason why Sweetheart like her? Omma think it's natural to first fall for a person's look, especially for teenagers, when all of you starts to be attracted to the opposite gender, but looks are not the most important reasons to like someone."

The boy's eyebrows wrinkled at Omma's words.

"It's the good heart and values that matter. Well, for Omma and Appa, at least. If the person is good-looking too, then that's a bonus."

"It's like this. There's girl A who's beautiful but she doesn't treat others well. Then there's girl B who's not so pretty like girl A, but she's kind to others. Who would Sweetheart want to be friend with?"

"Girl B."

Ga Eul nodded and smile.

"But Omma, not all pretty girls are like that. Eun-Kyung Noona is very pretty and very kind and nice. Jae Hwa Noona is also pretty and kind although Noona likes to bully Hwannie."

Ga Eul chuckled at his comment. Yes, though Jae Hwa loved his brother very much, she liked to 'bully' him as well. To her defense, Jae Hwa always said that it was not bully, but rather a playful tease.

"Of course Sweetheart. Not all pretty girls are rude and Omma am not saying that they can't change to become nicer, but just know that there are other traits that we should also look for in people."

"Omma, Hwannie are always nice to her. That was the first time that Hwannie told her about Hwannie's feeling. Omma, it hurt to hear her said that to Hwannie. She also said that she won't ever like a fat boy."

"Oh, Sweetheart. Poor Omma's Sweetheart."

Ga Eul hugged her son and rubbed his back up and down. She understood the feeling of being rejected. First from Soo Pyo and secondly from her husband. She hoped that Dae-Hwan would not feel discouraged and scared to like or love a girl again.

"Maybe this girl is not meant for Sweetheart. Omma am sure that there'll be other girls who'd love Sweetheart for who Sweetheart are."

"But Omma…"

"Sweetheart, this diet, no dinners and light breakfasts, they are not good. Sweetheart are still young and need all the good food to grow up. There are other ways to lose weight."

Dae-Hwan nodded. He did feel terribly hungry these three days. He even had light lunches at school and had a piece of fruit and a small glass of milk during the mid-morning break.

"And, Omma don't want Sweetheart to lose weight with the sole purpose of flirting or making a girl fall for Sweetheart. It should be for Sweetheart own self, for health."

"Yes, Omma."

"Sweetheart, why didn't Sweetheart tell Dae-Hyun Hyung, Dae-Jung Hyung and Noona about this?"

"Hwannie am afraid if they'd laugh at Hwannie. Noona, especially. Noona loves to call Hwannie Po, like the Kung Fu Panda Po. And a lot of girls like Dae-Hyun Hyung and Dae-Jung Hyung because Hyung are not fat. Hwannie am afraid if they won't understand Hwannie's feeling."

"Oh Omma's poor Sweetheart. Dae-Hyun Hyun, Noona, and Dae-Jung Hyung won't laugh at Sweetheart. They'd understand."

"Ouch!"

"Owww!"

"Aaaaarrrkkk!"

And the door opened, with the three eavesdroppers piled up on top of each other, startling Ga Eul and Dae-Hwan.

"Hyung! Noona!"

Ga Eul simply shook her head. Her three eldest children really were 'busybodies'.

The three of them then stood up and approached their mother and younger brother. Jae Hwa immediately back hugged Dae-Hwan and kissed his cheek. "Noona love you Hwannie, chubby or not."

"Ommaaaa…. Look at Noona. Noona's teasing Hwannie again."

The four of them laughed at him.

"Darling!" Omma pretended to scold her.

"So, who's this girl who has bad eyes and said Hyung's most handsome brother is ugly?" Dae-Hyun had his hands on the hips.

"Hyungggg… Ommaaaa…"

Dae-Jung lightly nudged Dae-Hwan's shoulder. "Hwannie, don't Hwannie trust us?"

"Sorry Hyung. Hwannie was embarrassed."

"Hwannie, we can start an exercise routine at the gym." Dae-Hyun was referring to the family's gym downstairs. Before, Appa used to take the boys for their weekly morning runs, but they had not done that for a few months now since Appa was busy.

"That'll be great, Hyung," added Dae-Jung.

"Oh, oh, don't forget our wrestling sessions."

"Darling…" said Omma, but the girl simply grinned.

Groowwwlll!

Dae-Hwan quickly crouched and touched his stomach. The rest was startled at first then broke into laughter.

Ga Eul then stood up and held out her hand to Dae-Hwan.

"Come. Let's go down. Omma will make sandwiches for Omma's most handsome son."

"Omma…" Dae-Hwan pouted but took Omma's hand, nevertheless.

"Omma, Hwannie is supposed to be on diet," commented Jae Hwa.

"The diet can start tomorrow. Right Sweetheart?"

Dae-Hwan smiled and playfully stuck out his tongue at Noona.

The other three then followed Omma and Dae-Hwan to the kitchen.

"Ommaaa! We're back!" cried Jae Eun and Jae Ji as they ran into the house. Yi Jeong, a pink fluffy bag on each hand, followed his two daughters.

"Everybody's here in the kitchen!" shouted Jae Hwa.

"Darling, can't you be any louder?" teased Dae-Hyun, earning him a scowl from the said girl.

"Sandwiches! Yum! Yum! Omma, Eunnie want sandwiches too."

"Precious too, Omma. Precious too. Precious want shrimp salad sandwiches."

"Ewwww, what such taste."

"Ommaaaa, Darling Unnie said ewwwww," Jae Ji stomped her feet in protest.

"Darlinggg…" warned Ga Eul.

"Well, it's true. Who eats shrimp salad sandwiches?" argued the eldest daughter.

"Precious do, and Eunnie Unnie, and Appa. Appaaa!" cried Jae Ji.

"Oh alright. Alright," said the sister. Ga Eul just laughed at her daughters' 'fights'. Jae Hwa really loved to tease her sisters.

Dae-Hyun and Dae-Jung stepped down from the high chairs. Dae-Hyun lifted Jae Ji up to take his chair while Jae Eun helped herself up. They were all at the kitchen island, watching Omma and Jae Hwa prepared some assorted sandwiches.

"Sandwiches at this hour?" Yi Jeong came into the kitchen and gave his wife a quick kiss on the lips. "Hi, Jagiya."

"Hi Honey. How was everybody? How did the discussion go?"

Before Yi Jeong could answer, Jae Eun and Jae Ji launched into series of stories about what they did at the Gu's. They were so animated, like their Omma. Their brothers and Jae Hwa's questions only added to the happy atmosphere in the kitchen.

Yi Jeong and Ga Eul just smiled at the usual noisy chattering scene.

Yi Jeong also noticed that Dae-Hwan was eating. He subtly nudged his wife and glanced at the boy. Ga Eul smiled wider and nodded.

"Hwannie," Appa softly called.

Everybody went quiet and turned their attention to Dae-Hwan.

"Yes, Appa." He put down the sandwich on the plate.

Yi Jeong nodded to the boy and patted his shoulder. Dae-Hwan then stood up and hugged Appa. The two little girls looked at them with a puzzled expression, while the elder three smiled as they exchanged looks.

"Please forgive Hwannie for worrying Appa."

Yi Jeong patted his back and said "Appa am just so glad that Hwannie are alright now. Next time, if there's any problem, please don't keep it to yourself, Okay? We're all here to help Hwannie out."

"Okay, Appa. Thank you, everybody."

"Oppa," Jae Eun called Dae-Hwan.

"Yes, Eunnie."

"Umm… Umm… there's a friend in Eunnie's class and…" Jae Eun thought hard, trying to remember something.

"And?" asked Dae-Hwan. Everybody was now focused on Jae Eun.

"She said that her sister likes Oppa."

"Whooaaaa!" "Waaaahhh" "Wow! Way to go Hwannie" were the collective comments by the three eldest siblings.

Jae Ji, on the other hand, was puzzled by her sister and brothers' reactions. Ga Eul smiled but Yi Jeong started to feel a headache coming. Ga Eul quickly held his arm and rested her head against it.

Dae-Hwan's face automatically went red.

A few moments later, Jae Ji clapped her hands as understanding on the matter just came to her. "Oppa has a girlfriend. Oppa has a girlfriend. Oppa has a girlfriend. Yaaayyy!"

"Precious." Dae-Hwan was still red in the face as the others laughed.

"See, Hwannie. There's a girl who likes Noona's chubby cute adorable brother. Hwannie don't have to slim down to make a girl likes Hwannie."

"Noonaaaa!"

The kitchen continued to be filled with their teases, laughter, and chatters.

"So that's the story?"

Yi Jeong and Ga Eul were ready to retire for the night. They were cozying up in a cuddle.

"Poor Hwannie. His first rejection. I need to teach him some moves with the ladies. Ouch!"

Ga Eul had slapped him on the arm.

"But it's a great idea, the family's exercise routine. I need to start exercising again too. And if all of us do it, Hwannie won't feel that he's the only one with the weight problem and he'll see that the real reason to exercise is to be healthy."

Ga Eul shifted closer to her husband. He smelled good.

"Honey, I don't mind having a chubby So Yi Jeong. You're just the older version of Sweetheart."

"Jagiya?" Yi Jeong was surprised. He had never imagined himself being a chubby person.

"As long as you're chubby but healthy, I'm happy."

Ga Eul kissed his cheek.

"And you'll be much more huggable too, like a teddy bear. My personal chubby teddy bear to keep me warm."

She kissed his jaw line.

"Is that so, Jagiya?"

He was getting lost in her kisses.

"Yes. I'll love you no matter what."

She kissed his lips.

"Slim or big, young or old, I love you So Yi Jeong."

And she showered him with more kisses and more.

"I love you Chu Ga Eul."