Chapter 14

"Geez, for him to leave me out!" Yong Soo mumbled sadly behind me when the door clicked close. No trace of Gege's presence was left in this house besides his scent.

I placed my head on Yong Soo's—with a bit of effort because of his height—and stared at the door which was now still. "He didn't want to see you…because you know as much as I do…that he'd cry." Yong Soo started to sniffle immensely and I laughed quietly, "Don't make me cry, now." Tears stung the corners of my eyes.

"He'll come back," Yong Soo encouraged, grasping my hand in his. We were quiet for a while; the grips given and received from each other encouraged us to stop our crying and look toward the future ahead of us. "Growl~" a low, deep growl interrupted the peaceful silence and it made me laugh. "He he… sorry, da-ze," Yong Soo apologized embarrassed.

When I stopped laughing, I felt that the grip given and received no longer forced encouragement but was gentle and caring. My expression softened as my tense shoulders loosened. "Come," I said gently, tugging slightly in his grip, "I'll make you some breakfast."

"Uri nara mansae~" Yong Soo cheered as he easily glided behind me, dragged by the grip from my hand in his. I couldn't help but think that the warmth of his hand will no longer come to my aid.

"What would you like to eat?" I asked, rolling up my sleeves.

"Kimchi~! Da-ze~" he said with pride.

"I meant for breakfast, silly," I specified, pulling on my apron now.

"Yeah~ Kimchi! I uh…have a meeting and need strength, you know?" he said, feeling uncomfortable while turning his gaze away from me. Why didn't he tell me before?

"Oh… let me guess, with the emperor, right?" I questioned.

"Yeah… I'm going to have to explain about Li if Hyung's not there," he said, wincing from the sudden mention. He had been close to Li, after all.

"Hmm…okay. Kimchi for breakfast, then!" I agreed. I mean, I should encourage him to courageously talk to the emperor, right?

"Yay, da-ze! Uri nara mansae~!" he cheered, happy that he won the argument. "Thank you, Mei!"

I smiled, "Yes, yes. Now let me make it." He left, cheering in the hallways, I felt my will betray my decision of sending Yong Soo away—I feared that he truly would not come back even though all he did was going into his room to prepare for the meeting later on. I smacked both my cheeks and closed my eyes, He's coming back. He's coming back! I'm overworking myself. I blinked and returned to working on the kimchi.

"It's ready, Yo Soo," I called out as I turned on the steam machine which began to hum loudly. I took a pair of chopsticks and began to scoop up the kimchi. I heard a steady yet fast thumping against the wooden boards and tried to scoop up the kimchi into the bowl faster. Yong Soo always wants the food to be ready by the time he takes his seat.

Yong Soo took a step into the kitchen and shouted, "YAY, DA-ZE! KIMCHI FOR BREAKFAST!" I was used to his loud voice as long as I knew his presence was near so thank god I didn't immediately jump and drop the bowl.

"Yes, yes. I'm almost done~," I said gently, picking up the ladle to add the sauce on top of the kimchi. A pair of strong arms wrapped around my waist and I felt a weight on my left shoulder.

"Thank you, Mei," he said with care and in a voice that I wasn't too familiar with but did know.

"No problem, Yo Soo. Here," I twirled around and placed the bowl in his hands along with the pair of used chopsticks, "Eat well and have strength." He stared hungrily at the bowl and I smiled up at him. His eyes flickered upwards, looking at me for a moment. A rather long moment. "What's wrong, Yong Soo?" I asked, feeling nervous. I placed a hand gently on his arm, getting a small grip on his hanbok's sleeve.

He leaned down and kissed my forehead. Before I had any time to act flustered, all too suddenly, I felt a rain drop land quietly on my cheek. Slowly, it slid down until it reached my jaw line and dropped onto the ground. A couple more came after and I soon found out that they were a mix of Yong Soo's tears and mine. "I'm scared," I confessed, shaking in his embrace. "I don't know what's going to happen—I don't want anything else to happen! I want everything to return back to normal," I breathed haggardly as I confessed all my worries to my older brother.

"I know," he whispered, his voice quivering from the melancholic state we were both in, "I know."

I didn't want him to leave. I didn't want anything else to disappear. I just wanted everything back to normal. Was that so bad?

Sorry for the delay! I was getting used to my new school and all... Well, here's my plan: I can only work on the story during lunch period (if I finished all my homework -3-) and when I have free time from my volunteering job... therefore I'm going to try to get at least one chapter out every week! I'm sorry if I made you all wait too much again. I hope you all like this chapter ^^

~Yui Lathens~