Wolves of the Pacific

by greenpeach20

In 1902, Renesmee Cullen grew tired of the tedious life of moving around with her family and decided to make the journey west as a mail order bride. Yet a chance encounter with a reddish brown wolf would change her life forever.

186. Chapter 186

Chapter 186

Before the school year started for the children, Jaedynn and Roshad visited New York for a short weekend to visit with Gloria then brought Raphael back with them to Washington to spend the week with them. It was exactly what Raphael had needed to feel better. Since the altercation in the park between Roshad and Alex, Raphael hadn't seen Alex. Aside from the fight, Raphael knew very little of what happened after and when Alex hadn't come to visit for a really long time, he'd asked Gloria and Margarita about it only to be scolded for asking about him. His grandma said he was never to bring Alex up again and all Gloria said was she didn't know where Alex was and that was the end of it. He'd been in low spirits when they first came to get Raphael but by the time they'd made it to Washington, he felt leagues better.

"And then," Kamron said while he held the flashlight under his face as they sat in a circle together under a sheet. They were all technically supposed to be in bed but after Roshad had tucked them all in, they decided they wanted to keep playing and tell each other stories. "The evil Dask'iya fell into the fire. As she screamed, the girl removed the gum from the other kids' eyes and returned them home." Once he was done, he looked at Raphael sitting beside him and handed over the flashlight. They were all technically supposed to be in bed but after Roshad had tucked them all in, they decided they wanted to keep playing and tell each other stories. "You're turn, Raphael." Raphael eagerly accepted the flashlight then held it under his face so it was shining at him.

"There was a family that lived in a big, fancy penthouse in New York City," Raphael started. "They were a young couple and on their first day in the apartment, they were introduced to a group of some friendly old people. After they met the old neighbors, strange things started to happen.

They invited the neighbors to a dinner party and the wife passed out. Then she had a vivid, horrible dream about the devil! She tried telling her husband about it but he convinces her she was just drunk. Then a short time later, the wife finds out she's pregnant. The old neighbors begin to visit often but as her pregnancy progresses, she starts going crazy."

"That's just Rosemary's Baby, Raphael," Jaedynn said and they all jumped and yelled when they heard Jaedynn from outside the sheet. Jaedynn pulled up the sheet so she could see all the boys, including Maleek, sitting in a circle. At the moment Maleek was clinging to Leo in fear. "What are you boys still doing up?" Jaedynn asked.

"We weren't tired so we started telling stories," Kamron answered.

"You did, did you?" Jaedynn asked and then sat on the floor. Once she was on the floor, Maleek crawled into her lap and she wrapped her arms around his waist holding him close. "How about I tell you boys a story?"

"What's the story?" Mikie asked.

"That depends. Do you want a funny story, a scary story, an adventure or a romance?" They all stuck their tongues out making exaggerated noises when she mentioned 'romance'.

"Not romance, mom! That's girly stuff!" Don countered.

"Fine, no romance," Jaedynn smiled.

"Tell us an adventure story!" Navid suggested with excitement and the others agreed that's what they wanted to hear.

"Alright, let me think of a fun adventure story I can tell you," Jaedynn said and thought for a moment what story to tell them. "How about I tell you a story about your grandpa? He was quite the adventurer." The boys all nodded eagerly so Jaedynn continued, "Alright; so a long, long time ago long before I was born, your Grandpa Nathan went on an adventure across the country with your Aunt Scarlet who, as you know, is far older than me." The boys all snickered at Jaedynn's affectionate jab at her sister. "Your grandpa was about to go into Mexico but," Jaedynn paused for affect looking at Raphael, "he didn't speak Spanish!"

"He didn't speak Spanish!?" Raphael repeated.

"No! Not a word," Jaedynn answered. "Now, unfortunately Raphael, you weren't born yet so you couldn't help Grandpa Nathan learn Spanish. So he had to stay with a really nice couple from Mexico working at a hacienda as a rancher so he could learn Spanish and make money while he did it. While your grandpa was working, the owner of that hacienda had a wife who took a shine to your Grandpa Nathan and started flirting with him relentlessly but your grandpa? Couldn't be less interested in her. So you know what your grandpa did?"

"What?!" Maleek asked with excitement.

"He told her so! He said to this lady, 'I do not like you, madam. Please go away and leave me alone,'" Jaedynn answered although she knew full well her father would've given a much less age appropriate answer.

"What did the lady do?" Raphael asked.

"Why, she accused your grandpa of taking a nap in the fields while on the job! And no such thing had happened."

"So she lied?" Don asked in horror.

"That's right! She most certainly did and because she lied, your grandpa was docked a day's pay! Your grandpa was so very, very angry but he didn't take this insult sitting down."

"What did he do, mommy?!" Maleek asked from on her lap.

"I'll tell you exactly what your Grandpa Nathan did," Jaedynn smiled. "He told your Auntie Scarlet they were leaving that night but they had a few errands to run first. So in the dead of night, your Grandpa Nathan and Auntie Scarlet snuck around the hacienda avoiding the guards and robbed that mean lady and her husband of all the money they had in the house!" All the boys gasped and it took everything in Jaedynn not to laugh. "And you want to know what else your grandpa did?"

"Yeah!" the all begged and all the boys were sitting in front of her sitting on their heels eager for her to continue.

"To get back at that mean lady and make sure she was in for a world of trouble in the morning, your Grandpa Nathan wrote her," Jaedynn paused for affect, "A love letter!"

"Ew!" all the boys cried and fell back on their butts.

"Your grandpa was very, very detailed in that letter," Jaedynn added. "So once they had the money, your Grandpa Nathan and Auntie Scarlet fled the hacienda and made it to the border of Mexico where a newspaper was covering the robbery. Your grandpa still has a copy of that news paper and it's hanging on the wall in his house."

"Really?!" Raphael said.

"Yes, really! We'll go this weekend and I'll make sure I show it to you," Jaedynn promised, "BUT – that will only happen if you all go to bed right now."

The boys dispersed going straight to their beds under the covers while Jaedynn held back a laugh as she went to put Maleek in his crib. She gave all the boys a kiss and told them to sleep tight before leaving the room but leaving the door slightly open for them. Once she was out, Roshad was standing in the hallway smiling at her.

"That was very clever," Roshad whispered to her.

"I thought so," Jaedynn smiled and gave him a kiss. "Honestly, the way those boys sneer at romance."

"They'll learn it's not so bad someday," Roshad said and wrapped an arm around Jaedynn's waist so he could lead her back to their room. "I had to check on Sherry and Iman. I'm afraid the boys' party woke them up."

"Are they back in bed now?"

"Yes, they're back in bed," Roshad said. "Remind me what Rosemary's Baby is again?"

"That's the movie starring Mia Farrow about the woman who gets pregnant with the Anti-Christ," Jaedynn said and Roshad's eyes went wide.

"And why does Raphael know the premise of that movie?"

"I'm sure he caught Gloria or one of his aunts or uncles watching it or something," Jaedynn shrugged and giggled when Roshad still looked unamused. "I wouldn't worry about it so much. Kamron admitted one of his friends showed him Alien and he seemed to handle that fine." Roshad sighed and mumbled something in Farsi. Jaedynn giggled and kissed him on the cheek. "I'm afraid we can't protect them from scary movies forever, Roshad."

"So it would seem," he answered begrudgingly.

Since they were up so late, the boys didn't get out of bed until nearly 11 in the morning but once they were out of bed, they were dressed in their swimsuits and ran outside and enjoyed the lake together. They went to the tribe for a long weekend and while they were in Forks, they made the trip to her parents' house and Jaedynn asked Nathan to show the kids the newspaper clipping from when he and Scarlet had robbed the owner of a hacienda he'd worked at. Scarlet retold the story with humor as did Nathan and they clung to every word Nathan said, eager to hear the story directly from the adventurer. They returned back to their home in Seattle the day before they would need to take Raphael to the airport and fly with him back to New York. They'd all be going together but they were sad Raphael was going back home nonetheless.

Jaedynn was doing laundry that Sunday while Ashti and Rashida were helping clean the house. Roshad was outside with the children when the boys came inside. Raphael grabbed an empty laundry basket and they all went upstairs with the basket putting Maleek in the basket at the top of the stairs. Raphael got in the basket with Maleek and told Kamron and the others to push them off the stairs saying they'd fly down. Ashti overheard the commotion and was about to intervene but Rashida stopped her telling Ashti the boys 'needed to learn the hard way'. Raphael held Maleek close in the basket then started counting. Once he reached three, Kamron let go of the basket and Raphael and Maleek flew down the stairs just as Raphael said they would. They cheered as they went down and Jaedynn thought nothing of it until she heard a loud smash. She dropped what she was doing and rushed to the source of the sound to find Raphael and Maleek both staring forward at the giant hole they'd just put in the wall realizing they were in big trouble.

"What the hell happened?!" Jaedynn yelled and she heard Roshad rushing inside with Sherry and Iman close behind. When Jaedynn yelled, Maleek and Raphael both looked at her wide eyed like deer in headlights.

What proceeded was Roshad taking over disciplinary action while Jaedynn called Ivory's house asking her to send Anatoli over to fix the hole. Once she'd explained what happened and Ivory relayed the story to Anatoli, she could hear the man laughing in the back and it only aggravated her more. By the time Anatoli arrived, the boys were all ordered to stay in corners in different parts of the house until otherwise told. All the boys stayed in their corners pouting irritably because they'd argued this was Raphael's fault while Maleek had started crying after being in the corner for about three minutes. Jaedynn tried to stay strong but before long, she couldn't do it and she went to Maleek picking him up and soothing him.

As planned, the next morning they were all on their way to the airport to fly back to New York with Raphael where they'd spend a night at Kevin's apartment then drop Raphael back off at Gloria's and her parents' place the following day. When they returned home, they stayed in Seattle the remainder of the summer before packing their things and moving back to Forks for when the kids started school. It would be Navid's, Sherry's, Leo's, Mikie's and Don's first day of Kindergarten while Kamron would be starting 2nd grade and Iman would be starting 1st grade. On their way to their first day, all except Iman and Kamron were really nervous. It was encouraged they all be in different classes but given how many of them there were and there being only 2 kindergarten slots in the morning and one in the afternoon, Renesmee had shuffled the kids into groups while the teachers of each class were tasked with ensuring the children were seated next to other classmates so they would socialize with the other kids. Once they arrived, Roshad took Sherry, Leo and Don to their class while Jaedynn took Navid and Mikie to their classes. Kamron insisted he could find his class and helped Iman get to her own without issue.

"Hey Jaedynn," the teacher, Alexis, said when Jaedynn came in with Navid and Mikie.

"Hey Alexis," Jaedynn said. She and Alexis knew each other in passing although they usually only saw one another during tribal holidays or weddings. "Navid, Mikie, this is your teacher Miss Oak. Say hello."

"Hello, Miss Oak," the boys answered shyly.

"Hello, Mikie," she said to Mikie and then looked at Navid, "Hello Navid. I'm so happy to have you both in my class. Why don't I take you to a spot on the rug and you can meet your classmates?" Navid and Mikie nodded anxiously and went to her. Once Alexis had guided them to the rug making sure they were in different spots near new kids, she looked over her shoulder at Jaedynn. "Not to worry, mama, your cubs are safe with me."

Jaedynn smiled at her joke, "Thanks Alexis. But if anything happens to them, I know where you live. And my daddy's a cop."

Alexis laughed, "Dually noted, Jaedynn."

Jaedynn looked at her boys and blew them a kiss before finally leaving the classroom to meet up with Roshad. When Roshad dropped off Sherry, Don and Leo, the handoff was not quite so smooth. Don and Leo were nervous but went to their assigned spots on the rug in their classroom while Sherry, by contrast, didn't want to let go of Roshad's leg and started begging to go to the same class as Iman. They explained Iman was in a different grade so they couldn't be in the same class together and after crying for a bit, Sherry finally relented and went with her teacher to her spot on the rug. Once Jaedynn and Roshad met outside in the car, he groaned.

"How'd everything go?" Jaedynn asked.

"Sherry was crying the whole time," Roshad said and rubbed his face. "She wanted to be in a class with Iman."

"They'll be able to play together at recess," Jaedynn said. "I'm sure by then she'll be okay."

"I'm sure she will," Roshad said. "How did everything go when you dropped off Mikie and Navid?"

"It was alright. They were shy but Alexis got them seated for class," Jaedynn said. "I'll bet you by the time we pick them up they'll have made new friends and won't want to go home. Remember Kamron's first day? He was so nervous but when we picked him up, he was telling us all about the new friends he'd made."

Roshad smiled fondly, "I remember." Then a question crossed his mind that made him lose his smile. "How was Iman's first day?" They looked at one another a moment and Jaedynn reached out to touch Roshad's hand reassuringly.

"She was really anxious," Jaedynn said. "She wanted you to be there when we dropped her off but she soldiered on and when Ashti and I picked her up, she'd made a new friend and was feeling better but she was having trouble opening up to the other kids. Then…well….you know what happened."

"I'm so sorry," Roshad said.

"Hey," Jaedynn said in a soft voice and leaned over so she was resting her head on his shoulder, "everything's forgiven. Let's not dwell on it okay?"

"Okay," Roshad said and leaned down to give her a kiss. Once he'd pulled away and was looking at her, he smiled tenderly and said, "Let's do something together today. Maman has Maleek and the kids are in school so we have all the time in the world."

"You don't have to go back into Seattle?"

"Rashida's at the house so if anyone comes by needing something, she'll be there," Roshad said.

"What should we do?" Jaedynn asked as she batted her eyelashes.

"Let's go see what's showing at the theatre," Roshad suggested.

"Oh! We can see Blue Lagoon at last. That's the one Ivory told me we need to see," Jaedynn said.

"Alright, let's find out when it's playing," Roshad answered and he got the car out of the lot and drove them back into town to the movie theatre.

The theatre wasn't open yet but the soonest showing of Blue Lagoon was listed for 11:30 meaning they had a few hours to kill so they decided to go for a walk together through the trails near town. By the time they returned back to the house hours later after the movie, Maleek was outside in the backyard with Ashti watching over him. He'd been upset at first that all his brothers would be gone all day but he quickly got over it once he had all the toys to himself while he played outside and when Jaedynn and Roshad stepped outside, Maleek was running in circles around the tree.

"Madar Jun?!" Maleek yelled in Farsi. "Look! Look!"

"Yes, Azizam, you're going so fast I can't keep up with you," Ashti answered.

"Why are you having Maleek run in circles around the tree?" Jaedynn asked Ashti quietly after stepping outside.

"You'll thank me when that boy's tuckered out at the end of the day and sleeps through the night," Ashti said. "He was restless so I told him to show me how fast he can run."

"That's one way to do it," Jaedynn laughed.

"Mommy!" Maleek screamed and ran right for her once he noticed her. "Mommy, mommy, did you see?! I was running so fast," he said while out of breath and trying to speak coherently.

"I saw that! That was amazing Maleek!" Jaedynn praised and picked up Maleek. "Have you eaten anything?"

"No," Maleek said.

"He lies, Jaedynn," Ashti said. "Before his marathon, he had a bog bowl of rice and leftover chicken for lunch. AND he had two apples."

"Is that true?" Jaedynn asked and Maleek started shaking his head but he was smiling indicating he was lying and Jaedynn couldn't help laughing. "How about a snack?"

"Yay!" Maleek cheered as Jaedynn went inside so she could get Maleek in a chair at the dining table. The boy was growing like a weed already taller than most in his age range. Navid, Iman, Sherry and Kamron were in the same boat.

"Do we have anymore apples?" Jaedynn asked Roshad while opening the fridge.

"There were five still in the fridge this morning," Roshad answered. Jaedynn found the last three apples in the drawer of the fridge so she took out one to start and came to the table with a knife ready.

"With or without skin?" Jaedynn asked.

"Without!" Maleek answered enthusiastically.

"You really should eat the skin, Maleek," Roshad said and took a gentle hold of Maleek's head while leaning over him. "That's where all the good stuff is."

"I don't like the skin!" Maleek argued.

"Why not? It's good for you?" Roshad asked but Jaedynn was already cutting away the skin with the green peel hanging off the apple getting longer and longer.

"Because it doesn't taste good," Maleek answered simply.

"You can't argue with that logic," Jaedynn giggled as she finished cutting away the skin. Then she sliced large chunks of apple away from the core then chopped the apple into bite size pieces. "There you go, Maleek," Jaedynn said and offered the small plate. Maleek grabbed it eagerly and pulled it in front of him about to dig in but Roshad, still holding Maleek's head in his hands, made Maleek look up at him.

"What do we say, Maleek?" Roshad asked.

"Thank you," he answered.

"Very good; now tell your maman thank you," Roshad said and leaned down to kiss Maleek's forehead before finally releasing him.

"Thank you, mommy," Maleek said.

"You're welcome, honey," Jaedynn answered with a loving smile and ran her fingers through his hair a moment. Once Maleek finished his apple, he looked at the empty plate then at Jaedynn with doe eyes.

"May I please have some more?" Maleek asked.

"Well," Jaedynn said, "you did run a marathon so I guess you can have some more."

"With peanut butter?!" Maleek started.

"Sure, you can have some peanut butter," Jaedynn said and returned to the kitchen with the plate and fixed up another apple adding a dollop of peanut butter to his plate. "This is it for now, okay? You'll spoil your dinner otherwise." Maleek nodded and started eating his apple but quickly realized he forgot to say thank you.

"Thank you, mommy," Maleek said and then returned to eating his apple with peanut butter.

Jaedynn smiled and watched Maleek a moment then glanced at Roshad. He was in the kitchen prepping some things for dinner that night. Jaedynn stood from the table leaving Ashti with Maleek and went to stand beside Roshad giving him a hug around his waist.

"What's for dinner tonight?" Jaedynn asked.

"Lamb kabobs," Roshad answered.

"Sounds delicious," Jaedynn smiled. "How do you think the kids are doing at school?"

"Alright I hope," Roshad said and then glanced at the clock. "We'll find out when we pick them all up in an hour."

Once Maleek finished his snack, Jaedynn went back outside with him to play while Roshad stayed inside prepping dinner and cleaning Maleek's plate. After an hour, Roshad and Jaedynn left to go pick up the kids from school and when they arrived a lot of the kids were outside on the playground with the teachers nearby to watch over them. Jaedynn spotted Kamron right away roughhousing with some boys from his class near the monkey bars with Mikie, Navid, Leo and Don trying to get in on the action. Meanwhile, Iman and Sherry were running around the playground with some other girls presumably playing tag.

"Looks like they're having a good time," Roshad said when they spotted the kids. They got out of the car and once she spotted her, Jaedynn went right to Alexis.

"Hey," Jaedynn said and Alexis smiled once she looked at her.

"Hey Jaedynn," she answered.

"I take it the kids did okay today?"

"Oh yeah," Alexis nodded and returned her attention to the kids. "They were nervous at first but they relaxed as soon as they were given some activities. Make sure you have them tell you what they did today. We were going over some Quileute vocabulary and sometimes when Navid would say a word he'd make that 'akh' sound in his throat. It was adorable."

"Would he really?" Jaedynn giggled.

"Yeah; Mikie kept telling him he was doing it wrong and I had to break up their squabbling."

"Yes, they do tend to squabble," Roshad said. "I know they weren't in your class but how did Sherry, Don and Leo do today?"

"Ruth said they did great," Alexis smiled. "It took Sherry a bit to settle but once she was comfortable she was okay. Oh! Before I forget. Mrs. Black sent out invites for parent/teacher conferences so make sure to schedule as soon as you get it."

"I remember," Jaedynn said. "It's still three meetings this year?"

"Yup; first one's going to be at the 6 to 7 week mark."

"Sounds good," Jaedynn said. She and Roshad stayed near the other teachers letting the kids continue to play. It started raining so all the kids were called to come inside and that's when Jaedynn and Roshad collected the kids to take them back home for the day.

The tribal school was scheduled to have a home coming dance, but Lee wouldn't be attending it. He had to work that night and the next day he'd be at hockey practice all day. He wouldn't be going to Tristan's and Lilliana's home coming dance either for the same reason and he'd made sure to tell Tristan. Lilliana was disappointed but not surprised. If he wasn't at hockey practice, Lee was either at school, working or sleeping.

When the night of the dance came, Lee left school and went straight to work up in Port Angeles. The dinner rush was about an hour away once Lee made it there so he was tasked with cleaning all the tables the previous busboy hadn't gotten to and put down fresh silverware, plates and glasses. Once the dinner rush started, Lee was going to and from the kitchen and dining room cleaning tables, letting waiters know they were being called back to a table and did some dish washing. By the time it was the end of his shift and the restaurant was cleaned up, it was 11:30 at night. When he stepped outside going to his car, he noticed Maggie pacing back and forth in front of his car.

"Maggie?" Lee said. "What're you doing here?"

"I had a friend drop me off after the dance," she smiled and went up to him giving him a big hug. She was still wearing her bright green party dress, her hair was curled and up and she had on lots of makeup like she'd wear on the ice. "How was work today?"

"Long," Lee answered and barely hugged her. "Sorry, I'm a mess."

"It's fine," she said and took his hand leading him back to his car. "Just so you know," she added after releasing his hand and walking around the car to the passenger's side, "I already told my parents I would be super late." She batted her eyelashes over her brown eyes smiling sweetly. It wasn't long ago that would've gotten him riled up and excited but now he wasn't feeling anything. Regardless, he smiled at her.

"Is that so?"

"Yes sir," she smirked. "So what do you say we go somewhere quiet?"

She opened the door to the passenger's side getting into the car before he could answer and Lee got into the driver's side. They drove around until they found a secluded area and once they were parked somewhere, Maggie leaned over kissing Lee trying to deepen the encounter. For a bit, he went alone but before long, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He'd not actually been with her like this in weeks and the time apart only cemented he didn't think of her the way he used to. His mind kept wandering to Lilliana.

"Maggie," Lee started and pulled his lips away from hers, "we need to talk."

"Talk? About what?" she asked.

"Us; this," he said with aggravation but took a deep breath so he'd calm down. "I'm sorry, Maggie, but I think we should break up." She didn't answer at first. She was shocked and felt blindsided, not sure where this was even coming from.

"What?" was all she said when she finally did answer.

"There's nothing wrong with you, Maggie – I just don't feel like I used to. I would like us to be able to stay friends, but I don't like you that way anymore," Lee elaborated.

"Is this because we haven't been able to spend as much time together?" she pressed.

"It's….not really," Lee said, "it's part of it but it's not the whole reason."

"What is the whole reason then? Are you seeing someone else?"

"What? Maggie, I don't have time to see anyone else. I promise, that's not what's going on. I just don't want to go out with you anymore," he said. Her shoulders slumped and she was still at a loss. She turned back into the passenger's seat and didn't say anything else. Since she was staying quiet, Lee turned the car back on and got back on the road so they could make their way back to her house. "I'm going to take you home, okay?"

Maggie still didn't say anything but by then she was staring out the window seething. They made it to Maggie's house having stayed in complete silence and once he brought the car to a stop, Maggie got out of the car without a word and slammed the door behind her. Lee stayed on the side of the road to make sure she got inside and he didn't drive away until she stepped into the house. He sighed heavily and felt like he needed to talk to someone. He considered driving all the way to Seattle to talk to Tristan but he had a feeling that wouldn't go over well. So instead, he drove to his brother Sergei's house. He parked the car in the driveway, went up to the door and knocked first but there was no answer. So he rang the doorbell. This time after waiting a moment, he noticed the lights turn on from the window and more lights turned on the closer Sergei got to the front door. When he finally opened the door, he looked pissed.

"What the fuck are you doing here? Do you have any idea what time it is?" Sergei demanded, speaking in Russian.

"Yes, I'm aware what time it is," Lee answered. "Can I come in? I really wanted someone to talk to."

"It's 1:30 in the God damn morning," Sergei said. "Can't you talk to dad? He'd be up at this hour."

"I don't want to talk to dad," Lee said and let himself into the house.

Sergei grumbled irritably and closed the door locking it then reaching into his jacket pocket to pull out a pack of cigarettes. Lee went to the couch taking a seat and Sergei plopped the cigarettes onto the table beside a lighter and ash tray then went to the kitchen to grab some more things. When he returned and sat on the couch beside Lee, he put down a bottle of vodka, two shot glasses and a jar of pickles. Once he was seated, he grabbed the pack of cigarettes and put on in his mouth then grabbed the lighter to light it. He released a puff of smoke, tossed the lighter on the coffee table and then grabbed the bottle pouring a shot for himself and for Lee.

"Thanks," Lee said.

"If your bugging me in the middle of the night it must be something worth drinking over," Sergei said and took back the shot in one go. Then he grabbed a pickle, bit into it, poured himself another shot and took that back. "So what's the problem?" Sergei asked and bit into the pickle.

"I broke up with Maggie," Lee said. "She didn't seem to take to too well." Sergei looked at Lee irritably.

"Seriously?" Sergei sighed heavily and took a long drag of his cigarette. "I did mention it's 1:30 in the morning, right?"

"Yes, Sergei, I'm aware," Lee said. "And don't get so grumpy. It's not like you're working tomorrow."

"Doesn't mean I don't want to sleep," Sergei muttered and finished off the pickle. Lee hadn't taken his shot so Sergei grabbed the shot glass and took the drink back himself putting it down on the coffee table. "Alright; what did she do exactly? Did she scream at you or something?"

"No," Lee said. "She asked why I was breaking up with her and asked if I was seeing someone else. I told her I wasn't and the reason I wanted to break up was because I didn't like her that way anymore. I said I wanted to stay friends but I don't think she'll be up for that. She was quiet the rest of the car ride back to her house and once we arrived, she got out without a word, slammed the door and went to the house."

"That's it?" Sergei asked. "Christ, boy, you got off easy. What the hell are you so upset about?"

"It's not so much Maggie I'm upset about. I'm more upset because of why I started losing interest in her," Lee said.

"Why did you start losing interest in her?" Sergei pressed. Lee was quiet at first, too embarrassed to say what was on his mind so he poured himself a shot of vodka and took it back before finally answering.

"I think I'm falling for Lilli," Lee finally said.

"Lilliana? Since when?" Sergei asked.

"Since right before Nadja and Levi got married," Lee answered. "I don't know what it is but something changed and now when I look at her I feel…attracted to her. But not just physically – there's something else but I can't really figure out what it is."

"And does Tristan know you're ready to jump his twin sister?" Sergei asked.

"No, I haven't said anything. He caught me checking her out once and he put the brakes on that right away," Lee said.

"So he's already told you Lilliana's off limits?"

"Pretty much," Lee said.

"Do you know if she likes you?"

"I don't know," Lee sighed. "It's not like I can really ask."

"Why the hell not?"

"Because Tristan already told me to back off! What if I tell Lilli I like her, she doesn't feel the same way and tells Tristan and he picks a fight with me? I don't want to ruin a friendship over this," Lee said.

"Alright," Sergei said with a shrug then took another drag from his cigarette, "then I say drop it. Maybe take some time to yourself for now. You've got another year before college, so use this time to work, study and practice then when you're at college go hog wild. Just not too hog wild. You get a girl pregnant, you'll be on your own." Lee's only response was a dismissive shrug. The prospect didn't appeal to him but he wondered if Sergei was right and he just needed to take some time to himself.

"Maybe you're right," Lee finally said. "Thanks for listening."

"You're welcome," Sergei said and stood from the couch putting out his cigarette leaving the butt in the ash tray. "I'm going back to bed. You get home and get some sleep. And next time you've got a problem and want to talk, please save it for a decent hour."

Lee smiled, "Alright, Sergei."

After his talk with Sergei, Lee tried to take his advice and not worry about what he was feeling for Lilliana. He kept wanting to hang out with Tristan, but neither of them ever seemed to have the time these days. While Tristan had more free time, their schedules seemed to always clash and they wound up not being able to see each other until Thanksgiving that year. Lee and Tristan both had to beg for that time off from work although Lilliana had not been so lucky. The retirement home was having a family buffet for Thanksgiving and Lilliana had to be there for at least the morning before another girl could take over the reception desk.

"So wait," Lee said after Tristan had explained everything, "How did you get off work but she didn't?"

"I asked for that time off weeks ago and I got lucky the manager approved it without thinking so by the time he said all staff are required to work I told him I already had plans and can't change them and he finally gave in," Tristan said. "Lilli tried to ask for that time off weeks ago but her manager only just got back to her last week telling her all staff's required to work today."

"That sucks," Lee said. "Is she able to come later?"

"No, she's going straight home," Tristan said. "We're going to leave early and grab as much food as we can so Lilli can have some and so we have leftovers."

"Well, let her know I said hi," Lee said.

"Also," Tristan added, "I heard you and Maggie broke up? What happened?"

"Nothing really," Lee said. "I just didn't want to be with her anymore. Between work, school and practice, I don't have time for a relationship. That night we broke up was the first I'd seen her in nearly a month I think."

"When did this happen?"

"Night of home coming," Lee said. "She came to the restaurant after the dance and I told her once we got somewhere quiet. Then I drove her home and we haven't spoken since."

"Well yeah, I don't think she'd go out of her way to call," Tristan said. "What about the scout? Is that still happening?"

"Yeah," Lee nodded. "I already applied to Michigan U and I got notice I've been accepted but the actual Hockey Scholarship is still pending. So I'm accepted but until that scout sees me play and determines I'm worth it to bring on the team, I'm paying for it myself. What about you? I know it's still early but have you thought about where you're going?"

"I don't know," Tristan said. "I don't want to go, frankly."

"You're going to college Tristan!" Kevin yelled from the other side of the living room at the Cullen house and Tristan slouched in the couch rolling his eyes.

Lee chuckled, "So still working on it?"

"Yeah, still working on it," Tristan grumbled. "What about you? What were you planning to major in?"

"I don't know yet," Lee said. "I still want to go pro quite honestly."

"Still good to have a skill under your belt," Tristan said. "Hell, if it's a Scholarship, get a degree in something crazy."

"Like what?"

"Basket weaving," Tristan answered with a shrug, "I don't know. Something you actually like."

"I can't say I've ever tried basket weaving but I'll keep it in mind," Lee smiled. "So hey, are either of you working tomorrow?"

"Nope," Tristan said. "I took off the whole weekend and Lilli insisted she wanted the weekend too so we're free until Monday. Why?"

"I have to work tomorrow night but I don't have practice tomorrow. How about we all do something?" Lee suggested.

"About damn time," Tristan smiled. "What should we do?"

"Whatever you guys want. I just feel like I haven't seen you in forever."

"Feeling's mutual, dude," Tristan said. "Lilli and I will be here tomorrow morning and we'll figure it out from there."

Back in Seattle, Lilliana returned home from work around three and she was exhausted. Kevin, Amber and Tristan didn't come back for another hour while Levi, Nadja, Embry and Heather stayed in Forks. Even if they were leftovers, Lilliana was happy she wasn't completely left out of Thanksgiving this year. Although after she'd had dinner, she went upstairs to shower planning to go to bed as soon as her hair was dry. After her shower, she went to her room drying her hair and got into some pajamas when there was a knock at the door.

"Lilli, you decent?" Tristan asked.

"Hold on," Lilliana answered and finished getting dressed then sat on her bed. "Come in."

Tristan let himself into the room closing the door behind him once he was in, "How was work?"

"A zoo," Lilliana said and stared at Tristan meanly. "I'm still mad by the way."

"Hey, it was my manager's oversight – I got lucky," Tristan said and sat on the bed next to her. "So guess what."

"What?" Lilliana asked.

"Remember how we heard Lee and Maggie broke up? Well, he confirmed. They broke up night of the home coming dance."

"I thought he had to work that day," Lilliana said.

"He did. She showed up at the restaurant after the dance to hang out with him after his shift was done," Tristan said.

"Huh," she hummed, "Sounds like that was meant to be romantic."

"I'm sure it was but he told her he didn't want to be with her anymore and that's that. He's not seeing anyone else but he also said he doesn't have time for a relationship right now. We've barely been able to hang out so I'd say I'm in agreement. I do have some good news though," Tristan said.

"What's that?"

"It's information you're happy to hear about, but that's not important right now," Tristan said, referencing an Airplane! gag and Lilliana started giggling.

"You asshole," she smiled.

"You walked right into it," Tristan laughed, "Anyway, the good news is Lee said he's free tomorrow until he has to go to work at 4 so we're going down to Forks and the three of us are going to spend some time together."

"Really?" Lilliana asked and Tristan nodded.

"You're welcome," he said and stood from the bed. "Get some sleep and we'll drive to Forks in the morning."

"You're driving just so you know," Lilliana said.

"You're paying for my gas," Tristan challenged and left the room before Lilliana could argue.

The next morning after breakfast, Tristan and Lilliana got in the car and made the long drive down to Forks meeting up with Lee at the Cullen house. They wound up deciding to walk to the Tribal School so they could use the playground. There were several kids already there enjoying the time off so they didn't get to use the swings or any of the equipment they'd not outgrown so they ended up sitting in the lunch area most of their time there. Whenever Lee and Lilliana started talking, Tristan would keep himself out of the conversation for the most part until one of them noticed he wasn't talking and included him. When it was nearly time for Lee to leave for work, they walked back to the Cullen house together and parted ways for that day promising they'd get together again as soon as they possibly could.

"You were awfully quiet today," Lilliana said when they were in the car.

"Yeah, I figured I'd give you two love birds some space," Tristan teased and Lilliana smacked his arm.

"Stop," she said but it was rather weak.

Jae Sun, sadly, could not return to Washington for Thanksgiving that year but fully intended to go for Christmas and would be there through New Year's. He went to Korea for a long weekend to check on the farm and make sure everything was going alright. The family living on the farm were keeping the farm maintained, their rent was on time and the house was in as good of condition as it had been when Jae Sun left. When he returned, he called Keiko to let her know and also just to talk to her. He suggested the two of them spend time together on Sunday and like clockwork, Jae Sun could hear Sojiro nearby suggesting places for them to go and he had to stop himself from audibly groaning.

"Think of it this way, Jae Sun," Max said when they were all having dinner together after work, "clearly the man likes you otherwise he wouldn't let you see Keiko at all – chaperoned or otherwise."

"I know but it's so aggravating," Jae Sun said. "I've been on more dates with Mr. Iwamoto than with Keiko."

"You see her after work sometimes don't you?" Louis said.

"Rarely," Jae Sun answered. "Sometimes she can claim she needed to go to the shop for something but she can only get away with that so many times before Mr. Iwamoto gets suspicious. We go out for lunch together as often as we can but we only get about an hour before she has to be back in the office."

"So really, you're upset because there's no opportunity to put the moves on her is what you're saying," Eric teased.

"I'll have you know moves are being put on – it's just to a very limited capacity at the moment," Jae Sun said. "Besides, it's not about that. I just want to spend more time with her."

"Aw, poor lovesick Jae Sun," Max chuckled.

"Shut up," Jae Sun mumbled.

On Sunday, Jae Sun met with Keiko, Sojiro and Hanako as had become standard. Sojiro took over most of the conversation and asked how things were in Korea. During their talk, Jae Sun relayed he would be going to Washington in December for his birthday on Christmas through to the New Year but promised he'd call as soon as he got back. The latter part he said to Keiko directly and she smiled pleasantly but she was sad to hear he wouldn't be in town for his birthday. She had a plan in mind and realized she'd need to move that ahead of schedule. For the remainder of the year, things kept up that way: Jae Sun would invite Keiko on a date, her parents would invite themselves onto that date and Sojiro would either take over the majority of the conversation or would remain extremely close so Keiko and Jae Sun were never alone. Jae Sun and Keiko would get to have lunch together throughout the week and occasionally she would come to his apartment after work, but she could never stay longer than an hour.

When December finally rolled around, Jae Sun saw as much of Keiko as he could before he had to leave for Washington. He would be leaving on the 21st of December and wouldn't be back until January 5th. Saturday, he was getting all his things packed so he'd be ready to leave in the morning. Hirohito had agreed to stop by Jae Sun's apartment daily to check on Poki and make sure he was okay. He promised if Poki was getting lonely that he'd sleep at Jae Sun's place to give him some peace of mind. While Jae Sun was packing, the buzzer to his apartment went off. He'd not been expecting anyone but he figured it was probably Hirohito and went to the door to let him in. He stepped out of the main apartment into the tiny shoe room, tucked his feet into some slippers as he stepped down from the elevation and finally opened the front door. When he did, he saw Keiko and she was holding a tiny cake with a lone candle that was even lit.

"Happy birthday," she said with a smile then it faded as she added, "that is, happy 'almost' birthday. I know it's not until the 25th but I wanted to do something special for you. I'd planned to show up on your birthday but you said you were leaving and –"

"Keiko," Jae Sun interrupted so she would look up at him. He was smiling lovingly at her touched by the gesture regardless of it being early. He closed his eyes a moment making a wish and once he'd made it, he blew out the candle. Once he had, he said, "Did you want to come inside?" She nodded bashfully and came inside handing the cake to Jae Sun so she could take off her shoes and slip her feet into the slippers before stepping inside the apartment.

"I hope strawberry shortcake is okay," she said.

"I love strawberry shortcake," Jae Sun answered and grabbed a fork ready to dig into the entire cake. "How long will you be able to stay?"

"I should leave no later than 10," Keiko said and Jae Sun immediately glanced at the clock: 7:45. "I told my parents I have a business dinner I'm attending tonight and that I would be getting home late."

"We'd better start talking business then," Jae Sun joked and led Keiko further in so they could sit together beside his desk. He lowered it down to act as a table to hold his cake and took a bite. "It's going to be so weird returning home and seeing people care about Christmas for a change."

Keiko smiled, "Yes, Christmas is usually a day you buy cake on your way home and go to work the next day."

"Not in the US," Jae Sun said. "Stores and houses are decorated with lights, a tree gets put up, there's Christmas music playing in every store and the stores are so packed with parents trying to buy their kids presents you can barely move. The best part, though, is when my mom makes me my birthday dinner. Ox bone stew with a big cake – every year."

"You never get tired of ox bone stew?"

"Never," Jae Sun said. "I would only get it once a year on my birthday. My siblings and I always get a special dinner for our birthday and ox bone stew is what I always pick. My brother Mae Sun always wants seafood. One year, a cousin of ours brought home this enormous king crab for his birthday. We had to burrow my Great Grandma Renesmee's pot she uses for making apple butter because it was the only pot big enough to cook the crab and we had to cook it outside on a fire."

"That's exciting," Keiko said and started to blush a little, "Maybe one day, I can make you ox bone stew for your birthday."

"You know how to cook?"

"Well….I mean, I've never cooked before. I've never needed to. Is ox bone stew hard?"

"Not really, but it's an all day process. When mom makes it for my birthday, she's up at the ass crack of dawn so she can start making it," Jae Sun said, "And she'll always make it at my grandparents' house since that's where Christmas is hosted every year. My great grandparents live there with the rest of the coven."

"I see," Keiko said sorrowfully. "Maybe one day I could."

"It'll be the best ox bone stew I've ever had," Jae Sun encouraged. "It's funny – when I was younger, I used to hover over my mom when she made it until dad told me to leave her alone. 'Standing there won't make it cook faster, Jae Sun,' he used to say. And when the broth was done cooking and mom had to strain it so she could get the meat and cartilage off the bones, the broth would solidify like gelatin and I would play with the bowl to make it wiggle."

"Playing with your food before it's even ready," Keiko teased with a gentle giggle.

"Hey, I would still have a few hours left before I could eat it – may as well play with it," Jae Sun chuckled. "And thank you again for the cake."

"It was my pleasure," Keiko smiled.

"What bakery did-" Jae Sun stopped when he heard a little chirp from Poki as he brought his front paws onto the table leaning over to sniff the cake. "Get your poo-paws off my desk!" Jae Sun scolded Poki and gently lifted him so he was no longer on the table. Then Jae Sun picked up the tray he was eating off of so Poki wouldn't get near it. "Sorry – he sees food so he must investigate."

"I thought cats couldn't taste sweet," Keiko said.

"A normal cat can't taste sweet. Poki isn't a 'normal' cat," Jae Sun said and then looked at Poki as he was coming onto Jae Sun's lap, "Isn't that right Poki? You're not normal at all – you're a little stink butt." Poki got on his hind legs like a meerkat trying to sniff the cake but Jae Sun held it higher. "Damn it, Poki, no!"

"He's definitely persistent," Keiko giggled.

"Yes, that's Poki in a nutshell," Jae Sun sighed and stood so Poki could no longer reach the cake and Keiko stood with him. Even now, she was mesmerized by his height. She couldn't believe anyone could grow so tall. "I'll finish this later," he said before taking another giant bite of the cake then putting it in the fridge where it was safe. Poki followed him and watched him put the cake in the fridge and sat down at his feet. "Now what are you going to do?" Jae Sun taunted and leaned down to pat Poki's head then walked back to where Keiko was still standing. "Don't let him fool you. He's been fed."

"I've gathered Poki has a flair for the overdramatic," Keiko smiled. "Are you taking him with you to Washington?"

"No, Hirohito's going to come over to check on him," Jae Sun said. "I'll only be gone about 2 weeks. There's plenty of food so all Hirohito has to do is refill his bowl, clean the litter and play with him a bit."

"Would you like me to ask mom to check on him? She loves cats so I'm sure she wouldn't mind," Keiko offered.

"I'd hate to put her out," Jae Sun said.

"Trust me, she won't mind in the least. I've told her all about Poki and she has been wanting to meet him," Keiko said. "When is Hirohito going to be checking on Poki?"

"He's about a block from me so he said he can be here at 3 in the morning before he goes to work and he'd stop by again around 1 in the afternoon."

"I can tell mom and she'd be happy to check on Poki," Keiko offered. "I can even come check on him."

"I only have so many keys, Keiko," Jae Sun chuckled but was already walking to the door to grab his keys. "Hirohito has the spare so you can use my key. Can you come over in the morning and I'll hand my key over once I've locked up?"

"Of course," Keiko smiled. "Mom and I will take turns going over."

"Poki will appreciate the attention," Jae Sun smiled and took his key off of the loop and rested it on the table. "Just remember not to leave out a whole lot of food. Otherwise Poki will eat until he's sick."

"Where do you keep the cat food?"

"Above the stove," he said walking into the kitchen space and opening a door above the burners where a giant bag of cat food was tucked away. "And don't leave the bag out either. He'll chew through the paper until he gets to the food inside. He's done that twice."

"Aren't you a little trouble maker?" Keiko said as she looked at Poki who was sitting on the floor by Jae Sun's desk.

"And make sure you never leave the lid up on the toilet otherwise Poki will get it there," Jae Sun said.

"Noted," Keiko said and scrunched her nose a little. "Has he always been like this?"

"Yup, ever since he was a kitten," Jae Sun smiled and closed the cabinet door then walked back over to Keiko. "Popo was a big trouble maker too but I think Poki puts him to shame on that front. Still," Jae Sun shrugged, "I wouldn't trade that silly cat for the world."

"He's a fortunate cat," Keiko replied. She glanced at his suitcase then asked, "Did you need help packing?"

"Sure," Jae Sun answered, "I'm almost done." Jae Sun went to his closet and pulled out a few more shirts and pants from the tiny closet he had and placed them on the floor beside his suitcase. "Could you help me fold everything?" he asked, offering her his shirts.

"Sure," she smiled and sat down in front of the suitcase across from Jae Sun and started folding all his shirts then placing them in the suitcase beside the jeans. "When was the last time you visited Washington?"

"It's been a really long time," Jae Sun admitted. "My parents would visit me in Korea at least once a year and whenever they could, my siblings would visit me too but it's been years since I've been back to Washington. This is the first year I've been able to afford a plane ticket home."

"I'm sure everyone will be thrilled to see you," Keiko said. "Do you suppose you've grown taller since last they saw you?"

Jae Sun started chuckling as he shook his head, "I haven't gotten taller. I reached 6'8" when I was in High School and it's the tallest I got." He finished folding the pants he was working on then put those in the suitcase. "I actually used to be really self-conscious about my height."

"Did you? I would think being so tall would feel….I suppose powerful."

"Hardly," Jae Sun smiled, "It's not often anyone will look me in the eye unless we're sitting down. Most of the time, people just gawk at me because they're not used to someone as tall as me. Years ago, my grandma insisted I go to a singles mixer in Seoul and I overheard one of the women there complain I was too tall and if she wanted to climb a tree she would go outside." Keiko released an unintentional giggle but she quickly stopped herself.

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to laugh," she said.

"It's okay," Jae Sun said, "It's a little funny. When I lived with my tribe, no one really looked at me weird for my height because most of the men in my tribe are really, really tall. Even the townspeople in Forks didn't think much of it but they definitely teased me. It wasn't until I moved to Seattle that I noticed people would gawk at me when they noticed how tall I am. When I moved to Korea, it was even worse because it's rare for men to reach 5'9" much less 6'8". I got used to it eventually but it's been a tough road."

"I promise not looking you in the eye isn't intentional. It's just hard to do for those of us who are vertically challenged," Keiko said.

"I know," Jae Sun replied and put the last of his freshly folded jeans into the suitcase. Keiko finished up the shirt she'd been working on and once those were in, Jae Sun shoved it to one side. "Honestly, aside from my toiletry bag, I'm all packed." They heard Poki chirp and looked at him as he climbed into the suitcase getting between Jae Sun's pants and shirts so he could snuggle into the small crevice making it bigger.

"I think he wants to come with you," Keiko smiled.

"Trust me, he doesn't," Jae Sun replied. "He hates traveling. When I first moved to Korea and brought Poki with me, he was meowing on the plane for over an hour. It got even worse once we were in the air. I think he felt his ears pop and it freaked him out. I couldn't check into a hotel because none of the places that were open would let me bring in a cat so Poki and I were sitting on the side of the road like a homeless man and his cat until my grandma could come get us. Then he had to get settled in our new house and that took months. Then when I moved here permanently, Poki was difficult on the plane but it wasn't nearly so long a ride at least. Then he had to deal with being in a new place for several weeks where he couldn't move around freely like he was used to and just when it seemed like he was adjusting, I moved him again."

"Poor Poki," Keiko said and started petting Poki's head. "He seems like he's adjusted to this new place well at least."

"I can tell he doesn't like it as much as the house in Korea but he's getting used to it," Jae Sun said.

"I wonder if he'd like spending some time at my house," Keiko pondered. "I think he'd love the garden. Plenty of birds and bugs to play with."

"As long as I'm there, he'd probably love it," Jae Sun said. "If I'm not with him he tends to get really timid in new places. When I was living with my aunt and uncle, Poki stayed in his little carrier for days. Poor little guy's been patient as a saint. I've moved him around so many times."

"When you come back, we'll find a day for you and Poki to come over and we'll let him play in the garden," Keiko suggested. "Mom will be delighted to have him over."

"Did your mom have cats when she was growing up?"

"No, just neighborhood cats," Keiko said. "Mom said there was a pure white cat that would come by their house every day because mom would feed him fish. If she forgot, that cat would follow her when she was on her way to school until she bought some eel from a local vendor."

"Did she ever name him?"

"My grandma told mom not to otherwise she'd get attached. Mom said to get around that, she just called him 路地猫さん (Roji neko-san/Mr. Alley Cat)," Keiko said.

Jae Sun chuckled, "That's precious. Whatever happened to Roji Neko-san?"

"I don't know. Mom said one day he didn't come over and she never saw him again. She thinks he passed away," Keiko said.

"I'm sorry," Jae Sun said. "That's the bad thing about cats being out and about: they can get into trouble or fall prey to a fox or a dog. Popo would go outside but he preferred to be inside and he never wandered too far from the house. Poki hasn't been outside since he was a kitten. He's been an indoor cat since the moment I adopted him. Silly cat wouldn't know what to do with himself if he went outside."

Keiko giggled, "Probably not." She continued petting Poki who by now had closed his eyes with contentment and was purring.

"I didn't ask: how was work today?"

"Work was alright," Keiko said. "We just won ourselves a new customer and Mr. Saito's over the moon about it. He wants to put together a small team whose sole responsibility is this new customer."

"What kind of work do they need you guys to do?"

"Building rights, licensing and general guidance," Keiko said. "It's a company from Nagasaki who made a name for themselves repairing and remodeling old buildings. The work in their portfolio is quite remarkable. They started out as a non-profit right after the nuclear bombing to help recover after the war. 10 years ago I think it was, the son took over and he turned the company from a non-profit to a remodeling company although they do still perform volunteer work for buildings that have been destroyed in earth quakes. Their headquarters will stay in Nagasaki but they're opening an office here in Tokyo and we've been contracted to help them from the legal end and keeping within building codes for the area."

"That's exciting," Jae Sun said. "Have you ever been to Nagasaki?"

"Once," Keiko said. "I was really little and we were already in Osaka to visit my mother's family. My teacher had suggested, as part of my history lesson, that we all go to Hiroshima as a family. Father decided we'd go to Hiroshima and Nagasaki. We were gone from Tokyo for over a month."

"I assume your dad never took you to Northern China, though?"

"He never showed me Unit 731, no," Keiko said. "Even if he was willing to talk about that time, I don't think I'd want to go. It's too gruesome."

"I can understand that," Jae Sun said. "My cousin went to see Dachau when he was younger. It looks nothing like it did when it was in use but he said it was still really chilling to be there."

"I'm sure it is," Keiko said. "Death permeates in the air. When so much death happens in one spot, it's oppressive."

"Absolutely," Jae Sun agreed. "Is Mr. Saito adding you to the team that'll be working directly with this new customer?"

"No," Keiko said, "He'll be giving it to senior team members although I'm sure the rest of the team will be brought in to help when it's needed. What about you? How was your day? Did you get any work done on your newest installment?"

"I haven't really worked on it today," Jae Sun said. "I turned in my last book a few days ago and the editors are still working on it. I'll work on the next book on the flight and probably have it ready to submit by the time I get back. Then I can make corrections to my last book while they edit the new one and be ahead of schedule."

"Would that mean two books get published at once?"

"No. It would just mean I have more breathing room to work on another installment. While I'm back home, I fully intent to go on a hike through the woods – get the creative juices flowing."

"That sounds like a great idea," Keiko smiled. "Any news about selling these outside of Japan?"

"Not yet," Jae Sun said, "Although I have already started translating the first few books of Popo's Misadventures into Korean and English so they're ready for review. Max said his department is still crunching the numbers to see if sales outside Japan would be profitable but he's optimistic."

"Would you be able to sell them in Korea?"

"I hope so," Jae Sun said. "I'll talk to my publisher and see if a joint venture can be done with a publisher in Korea but so far the only overseas sales I can definitely look forward to is the UK."

"I'm sure you'll be able to publish in Korea," Keiko said confidently. "You already have a fan base there. I'm sure if a manga of Popo became available in Korean they'd jump on it."

"I hope you're right," Jae Sun said. He looked at Poki in the suitcase and he was still purring with his eyes closed while Keiko was petting him. "I wonder if I can finally eat my cake now that he's distracted."

"I guess that depends: would be choose pets and a cozy spot over food?"

"Not a chance," Jae Sun sighed while Keiko started giggling gently. Regardless, Jae Sun stood to go to his fridge and get his cake. As soon as he opened the door, Poki perked up and jumped out of the suitcase rushing to Jae Sun's side starting to meow. "God damn it, Poki! Let me eat in peace!"

Keiko tried not to laugh but she couldn't help herself. Jae Sun was shuffling around trying to enjoy his birthday cake while Poki meowed with expectation maneuvering around his legs and jumping onto the kitchen counter begging for his share. Keiko walked over and picked up Poki as best she could despite Poki trying to get away. Once she had Poki in her arms, she walked back towards Jae Sun's desk staying standing while she held and petted him. It was clear to her Poki was tolerating being held and kept staring at Jae Sun.

"Is he mad?" Keiko asked when Poki made an attempt to get out of her arms.

"Oh yeah, he's grumpy," Jae Sun answered with a humored smile. "Thanks for that."

"I paid good money for that cake. I'd like you to be able to enjoy it," Keiko replied with the same smile. It was a small cake so Jae Sun managed to polish it off rather quickly. Once he had, he threw out the container and started washing his fork. Once the cake was gone, Keiko finally put Poki down who rushed over to Jae Sun only to discover there was no more cake and he started meowing again in protest. "I'm so sorry, Poki," Keiko said.

"Don't apologize; it wasn't his cake so he has no reason to be so fussy," Jae Sun said. He reached into the top cabinet going for a bag of treats and pulled out a small piece that he offered to Poki. "You can have one," Jae Sun said sternly and while Poki accepted the treat, the moment it was gone he started looking at Jae Sun expectantly. "Nope," he said. "I said you could have one and that's what you got."

"Maybe he could have one more," Keiko tried to argue on Poki's behalf.

"Don't fall for it, Keiko," Jae Sun warned. "He'll have you feeding him until he's sick if you do."

"I can't imagine one more will hurt," she responded playfully.

"You disappoint me, Keiko. I thought you were stronger than this," he teased and finally opened the bag to take out one more treat that he handed over to Poki but once that was done, he quickly put the bag away. "No more, Poki," Jae Sun said and walked away. Once he'd finished his treat, Poki jumped onto the kitchen counter and tried his best to reach the cabinets with his tiny paws but he couldn't reach them and when he couldn't, he started meowing.

"If I didn't know better, I'd think this poor thing was starving," Keiko said.

"He's not, I assure you," Jae Sun said. He went to his desk pulling out some paper then started putting down some dates starting with the next day up until when Jae Sun would be coming home. Then at the top, Jae Sun wrote in Japanese 'What time was Poki fed?' Once he had that written out, he grabbed some tap and walked over to the entrance near the kitchen taping the piece of paper to the wall. "There," he said. "Now there's be no confusion."

"That's a lot of extra effort," Keiko said.

"You've never had to clean up after Poki when he's been sick," Jae Sun mumbled. "I do this because I care. I'll feed him first thing in the morning and write it down. It'll be up to you, Mrs. Iwamoto and Hirohito to keep up with the dates."

"Don't worry, we will," Keiko promised. Jae Sun walked back over to her and the two of them sat back at his desk on the floor.

"My parents know about us although I haven't told them much. We don't really get much of a chance to talk but I'll tell them more about you while I'm visiting," Jae Sun said with a light smile. "They'll want to meet you and your parents. I'll let you know as soon as they can make the trip to Japan."

"That would be nice," Keiko answered with a blush. "Do you think they'll like me?"

"They'll love you," Jae Sun answered and reached over to take her hand. "Mom may have her reservations about you being Japanese but once she gets to know you, she'll love you."

"Please don't let her hold anything against my father," Keiko pleaded. "He did as he was ordered and he thought he was doing the right thing. He knows now what he's done was wrong and he's done what he can to repent."

"I'll make sure she understands," Jae Sun promised. "I don't know if you'll meet my siblings any time soon but maybe one of these days they can come visit. Or I can bring you to Washington."

"Someday," Keiko smiled. "I'd like that."

"Good," Jae Sun replied and then leaned over so he could give Keiko a kiss. She accepted his kiss as she blushed profusely and her stomach fluttered.

Jae Sun moved a little closer wanting to hold her while they kissed and soon he had Keiko pressed against his chest. She was on her knees with her hands on his chest and even sitting down she had to prop herself up so she could actually reach his lips. Jae Sun knew they couldn't do anything right now. He didn't have anything for protection and he didn't want to run out to get something and make her feel awkward. So he would be content with just a kiss but as the moments passed, he continued to deepen the kiss. He pressed his tongue to her lips requesting entry and when her lips parted, she released a breathy sigh. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't help his hands starting to wander. Jae Sun trailed his hands down Keiko's back over her butt and to her thighs with her clothes preventing him from feeling his skin.

She felt so slight in his arms; like holding a feather. Keiko wrapped her arms around his neck as they continued to kiss and for a moment Jae Sun was well and truly lost. He wrapped her legs around his waist and lowered her so she was on the floor. Keiko's whole body tightened with anticipation wondering what Jae Sun would do next. His hands started trailing over her stomach until he got to the hem of her heavy sweater so he could tuck his hands underneath. Her skirt was high waisted but when he reached the hem he finally felt her bare skin. She was so soft and warm and he grabbed a hold of her at her ribs wanting to feel more of her. He started to move his hands further up until he felt Poki start wandering over to them but before he could even try to make Poki leave them be, there was a loud slamming sound that echoed from a few doors down from his apartment followed thereafter by two people yelling at each other in English and just like that, the mood was completely ruined.

"I'm sorry about that," Jae Sun said as he sat up. Keiko's hands went to her face to hide how much she was blushing. "Are you okay?"

"I'm alright," she promised. She took a deep breath and removed her hands so she could look up at Jae Sun. "I always forget how thin these walls are."

"I definitely did for a minute," Jae Sun said and continued to sit back and Keiko sat up with him. "I'm sorry if I was too forward."

"It's alright," Keiko said and continued to blush. Her face was beet red and she was staring at the floor as she quickly got to her knees with her hands fisted in her lap in a formal posture. "I was swept up in the moment just as much as you." Jae Sun glanced at the clock and saw it was 8:00 pm. They still had time but he had a feeling she was too embarrassed to stay.

"Did you want me to walk you back to the train station at least?" To his surprise, Keiko shook her head although it was slow and timid.

"I didn't really want to go home yet," Keiko admitted and finally looked up at him. "There's….um," she started but she looked too embarrassed to continue. Jae Sun moved a little closer she he could hug her and pressed her head to his shoulder.

"Have I ever taught you to play poker? I'm not very good at it but I can teach you how to play," Jae Sun offered but Keiko shook her head, this time with more energy.

"That wasn't what I had in mind," Keiko replied in a quiet voice. "What I meant to say…..that is…." Keiko was having a hard time saying what she wanted to say but this time Jae Sun stayed silent and let her finish. "It's a place that's not far from here," Keiko said. "I found out it's really nice and they don't charge very much for the hour. The walls aren't so thin and they have the necessities."

"I'm not sure I follow," Jae Sun said. "You want to go out somewhere? Where did you have in mind?"

"It's called Minato," Keiko said. "It's that building not far from the train station with all the pink and red lights and the banner with hearts on it."

"Isn't that place a Love Hotel?" Jae Sun asked and all Keiko could do was nod meekly.

"That's where I'd wanted to take you for your birthday originally," Keiko said. "We have time and we can get the room by the hour."

"Keiko," Jae Sun said and used his hand to gently guide her to look up at him, "I'd rather have more than two hours if that's what we're doing. Besides, by the time we get there, get checked in and get a room, we'll have an hour at best."

"You don't want to go then?"

"Believe me: I want to," Jae Sun said, "But I want us to be able to take our time. I don't want to rush it." Jae Sun leaned down to give her a chaste kiss. "When I get back, we'll pick a day to go together and make sure we can spend a few hours together."

"How about Valentine's Day?" Keiko suggested.

"Around there but not day of," Jae Sun said. "I promise you and I won't be the only ones trying to get a room that day."

"I suppose that's true," Keiko said. "I will think of something to tell my parents so they won't be with us."

"Okay," Jae Sun smiled and gave her one more kiss. "We'll find a day enough in advance or we can throw them off the trail. Then on Valentine's Day, we can all do something together so they're none the wiser."

"Okay," Keiko smiled sweetly. "I just want it to be special."

"It will be," Jae Sun said. "I'll make sure of it."

Keiko stayed at Jae Sun's apartment another few hours but final left near 10:00 PM so she could go home. Jae Sun walked her to the train station and Keiko promised she'd come back in the morning before he left so she could get his key to help look after Poki. The next morning as Jae Sun was getting ready to leave for the airport, his buzzer went off and, assuming it was just Keiko, he responded into the speaker saying he'd be right down. Once he got there, Keiko was downstairs but so was Hanako. He was a little surprised but welcomed her all the same and eventually handed over his key so Hanako and Keiko could help care for Poki. They walked him to the train station but as soon as Jae Sun was gone, Hanako rushed back to Jae Sun's apartment with Keiko eager to finally meet the infamous Poki.

"Just a warning: Poki loves food," Keiko said as they let themselves into Jae Sun's apartment. They could already hear Poki meowing on the other side of the door.

"Poor baby; he already misses Jae Sun," Hanako said and got her feet into some slippers before going over the threshold to the final door and letting herself in.

The two of them stayed at Jae Sun's apartment for hours while Hanako played with and got to know Poki. Poki was taken with Hanako near immediately. She let him play with her hand, scratching and nipping without so much as a flinch. By the next day, Jae Sun finally landed in Washington late in the morning and the moment he could, he called home to let them know he'd made it back so someone could come pick him up. About an hour later once he was finally able to get all his things and get outside, he spotted Mae Sun's car and rushed over going to the back seat to get his things into the car.

"How was your flight?" Mae Sun asked as Jae Sun was getting his two suitcases into the back.

"Long," Jae Sun said then closed the door before going to the front passenger's side and letting himself in. Once he was seated, he reached over and the two of them hugged briefly. "How've you been? You haven't changed a bit since the last time I saw you."

"I'm fine," Mae Sun said. "Consider yourself fortunate I was at mom and dad's when you called. Eun Mae and Mae Yon offered to come pick you up – finally got their licenses."

"Unless the highway's been lined with mattresses and tires since last I was home, I'll pass," Jae Sun said and Mae Sun started laughing.

"Seriously," he replied. "They passed their driver's tests first try. Dad chocks it up to his superior driving instructions and a little help from God."

"Did dad have a cross in the car or something?" Jae Sun asked jokingly.

"He did actually," Mae Sun answered and Jae Sun burst out laughing. "Anatoli was gracious enough to let him use the one he usually keeps in his car. And do you want to know something? Two days after Anatoli lent it to dad, he got into an accident. Some guy rear ended him."

"You're kidding."

"I swear it's true," Mae Sun said. "Anatoli was at a stop light and someone was driving too fast, didn't stop in time and boom! Rear ended him."

"Poor Anatoli," Jae Sun chuckled. "But hey, better him than Eun Mae or Mae Yon, right?"

"Exactly," Mae Sun laughed.

"Has dad given it back yet?"

"Yeah, he did but only after Anatoli got him crosses to keep in his car then the girls each have one once they can afford to buy their own cars," Mae Sun said.

"What about Eun So and Hae Li? How are they doing?"

"They're doing fine," Mae Sun said. "Hae Li works with dad at the General Store and Eun So got a job in Port Angeles and going to school."

"Veterinary science, right?"

"Yeah," Mae Sun said, "and if he does well during his internship his last year of school, he'll be promoted where he's working. Right now he's just front desk and can help in emergencies but since he's not licensed yet he can't start practicing."

"Still, that's exciting to work for a Vet while you're going to school," Jae Sun said. "Have Eun Mae and Mae Yon decided what they want to do or do they not want to go to college?"

"Mom's really pushing them to go to college," Mae Sun said. "Eun Mae's thinking of getting into Political Science and Mae Yon wants to be a dentist."

"Why a dentist?"

Mae Sun shrugged, "Our tribe doesn't have one yet so she figures she'll work on filling that niche."

"She's certainly not wrong," Jae Sun said.

"How has the farm been since you rented it out?"

"It's been great," Jae Sun said. "The tenants are taking really good care of everything and I get some profit from the rent and crop sales. It's not exorbitant by any stretch but it definitely eases the financial burden of living in Tokyo."

"Enough that you can afford a shoe box. Fancy," Mae Sun teased.

"I can fit on the floor to sleep and that's good enough for me," Jae Sun smiled. "Not all of us can have a one bedroom apartment Mr. Moneybags."

"In all seriousness, was cost really the issue?"

"That and the fact I'm a foreigner," Jae Sun said. "There's this preconceived notion that because I'm a foreigner I'm a flight risk and I could leave without paying my rent or something and a lot of landlords are hesitant to rent to non-Japanese or will outright refuse. Having a cat doesn't help my situation much either if I'm honest."

"Would it help if you lived outside the city or something?"

"I don't know," Jae Sun said, "but even if I did, Tokyo's expanding so much that most of the countryside's been turned to city. To get a place outside the city, I'd have to be a few hours away from the publisher."

"You only go in once a month though, so it shouldn't matter right?"

"Honestly, I've been able to make some friends in the city and if I moved, seeing them would be a huge chore. Having friends has made living in Japan so much easier so if I lost that group of friends, I don't think I could handle it."

"I thought you liked living in Japan."

"I do and I don't," Jae Sun said. "The honest truth is if you aren't used to the culture, it can be really oppressive. It takes a lot of getting used to."

"Korea took a lot of getting used to didn't it?"

"Not really; everyone knew me so it was easier to get settled," Jae Sun said. "I'm starting to get used to it though."

"Still good to be home, though?"

"Yeah, definitely good to be home," Jae Sun said.

"Do you ever plan to move back to Washington?"

"I don't know," Jae Sun said honestly. "With me needing to act as landlord for the farm and working for a Japanese publishing company, I think I'm better off staying in Japan. Besides, I don't know how open Keiko would be to moving to Washington."

"Oh yeah, that's right; you're seeing someone," Mae Sun said.

"Yes, since the summer," Jae Sun said. "Although if I'm honest, I think I've been on more dates with her dad."

"He's old fashioned?" Mae Sun asked with a chuckle.

"Yes, very," Jae Sun said, "but we'll figure something out for Valentine's Day so we can have some time alone."

"Just be careful," Mae Sun said. "From what you're telling me, I'll bet you if you knocked her up that man would have you hanging over a shark tank by a fish hook."

"You kidding? That'd be a kindness," Jae Sun said. "The man was involved in human experiments during the war so anything he would come up with would be far more gruesome."

"Wait, are you serious?"

"Yeah," Jae Sun said, "He was in med school and after he graduated he joined the army as a doctor and was station in Northern China for Unit 731."

"Like a prison camp?"

"Kind of," Jae Sun said. "It was a lumber mill that was converted into a laboratory and Chinese citizens and western missionaries were held there and experimented on. Mr. Iwamoto won't talk about it much. He acknowledges he worked there during the war, he acknowledges he regrets many things and that's all he'll really say about it."

"Did you already tell mom all this?"

"No, I haven't," Jae Sun said. "All I've told her is I met someone, her name's Keiko Iwamoto and mom remembers her vaguely and since they weren't a very social family no one really knew very much about them except Mr. Iwamoto served in the Imperial Army."

"Well, it's going to come up so I'd suggest getting it over with now," Mae Sun said. "You know how mom gets about that sort of thing."

"I know," Jae Sun said.

"I assume dad doesn't know either? I haven't been on patrol with him for a while."

"No, he doesn't know either," Jae Sun said.

"This'll be a fun family dinner," Mae Sun mumbled sarcastically.

Once they made it back to Forks, they went to the General Store first thing to see JJ and Hae Li. Several people from town were there to shop and the moment they spotted Jae Sun, he was swarmed. They asked how he was doing, commented on how long it had been since they'd seen him, they asked if he'd finally met a nice girl, one woman joked that Jae Sun must have gotten taller – he was held up for a while before he could finally get to the register to see JJ. Hae Li finished stocking up some shelves in the back so he could come to the front to see Jae Sun too. Jae Sun and Mae Sun stayed at the General Store until it was closing time and they all went back home together where Eun Mi already had dinner on the table while everyone waited. Jae Sun smelled it from outside the house but was sure he was going crazy but when they came inside and he saw Ox bone stew on the table, he almost cried.

"You made ox bone stew?" Jae Sun asked.

"I couldn't help it; you haven't been home in years. I had to make it," Eun Mi said and went right to the door to give Jae Sun a big hug using her invisible extensions to get up to his level. "집에 오신 것을 환영합니다," (jib-e osin geos-eul hwan-yeonghabnida / Welcome home) Eun Mi said.

"집에 있는 것이 좋다," (jib-e issneun geos-i johda / it's good to be home) Jae Sun answered. When Eun Mi eventually released him, his brothers and sisters came to give him a hug as well before they could all sit down together at the table. JJ had his own soup to himself while everyone else had ox bone stew with rice and there were several side dishes on the table. Any that had meat were closer to Jae Sun and the others while anything that had no meat or fish were in two separate dishes on both ends of the table. "Oh God," Jae Sun said once he'd had a bite of his stew, "I don't know what I'm doing wrong but every time I make this it's just not the same."

"It's always special when mom makes it," Eun So said.

"It's the same way with the kimchi," Jae Sun said and took a piece off one of the dishes. "I try to get fancy when I make it but it never beats mom's recipe."

"What are you adding to it?" Eun Mi asked.

"I've added salted shrimp, I've added really thin slices of beef, I've added thin slices of octopus – I've tried a few different recipes."

"I'll need to try putting octopus in mine," Mae Sun said.

"You made your own kimchi? Has hell frozen over?" Jae Sun teased.

"Ha, ha, very funny," Mae Sun said. "Just because I prefer mom's cooking doesn't mean I can't do it myself."

"Mom cut you off is what you're saying," Jae Sun said.

"Mom told him that if he wants a woman to cook for him regularly, he needs to get married," Eun Mae said and Mae Yon started giggling as she was blowing on a spoonful of stew trying to cool it down.

"Well shit, sounds like you'd better get on that," Jae Sun said. "Although it sounds like you at least know how to make more than just coffee so you're not completely hopeless."

"Yes, I learned not to be like dad," Mae Sun said and they all laughed a little.

"Speaking of," JJ interrupted, "you said you and Keiko are dating now?"

"Yes, we are," Jae Sun said. "We bumped into each other on the train one day and reconnected from there."

"You said you imprinted on her right?"

"I did," Jae Sun said. "And since becoming official, her father and I have become very acquainted and he's a delightful man to go on a date with."

JJ huffed with light laughter, "So her parents chaperon?"

"Oh yeah," Jae Sun said. "Keiko and I go to lunch together during the week a lot otherwise when we're spending time together over the weekend, her parents are with us. I was hoping you and mom would be able to come visit me in Tokyo soon so you guys can meet."

"We'll figure something out," JJ agreed. "So I take it her parents like you?"

"Hanako's amazing – I think she liked me from day one. Sojiro was a little apprehensive about me at first but I think he's grown to like me. He's not too thrilled with my income but he's looking past it."

"He is?"

"Yeah," Jae Sun said, "I think because Keiko wants to keep working and doesn't want to be a housewife. Honestly, I'm shocked Sojiro's okay with that but she has a really good job so that's probably why."

"So he's not expecting you to support a wife and kids on your income alone right?"

"Exactly," Jae Sun said. "I don't think I could right now anyway."

JJ shrugged, "I guess it's starting to be a little unusual these days for only one person to work."

"What about your comics selling overseas?" Eun Mi asked.

"That's still up in the air but it's definitely something to look forward to," Jae Sun said. "Once that's broached, I'll try ask my publisher about getting it translated and sold in Korea."

"That'll be exciting," Eun Mae said. "Once those are translated into Korean, you need to send us copies."

"I will," Jae Sun promised. "Oh, and mom, there is something I should mention about Sojiro."

"What's that?"

"Sojiro was a doctor and when he joined the army he was stationed in Northern China," Jae Sun said and that caught Eun Mi's attention.

"Where?"

"I don't remember the name of the region. He was stationed at Unit 731," Jae Sun said. He waited for Eun Mi to say anything and for a moment she was stone faced.

"I see," she finally said. "And what has he said about his time in the army?"

"Very little," Jae Sun said. "He really doesn't like talking about it. He was changed when the Russians were closing in on them and the guy who changed him became good friends. I guess there were several people that were held prisoner there that were changed and Sojiro was the only Japanese soldier who was changed as well. From what little's been explained to me, it sounds like they took Sojiro through a bit of a spirit journey almost as a way to repent for what he did."

"And they've forgiven him?"

"Yes," Jae Sun answered.

"That's certainly worth something," Eun Mi said.

"I just don't want this to affect your opinion of Keiko," Jae Sun said.

"No, certainly not," Eun Mi answered and JJ smiled a little staying silent. "When we meet, I won't bring it up. I'm sure Keiko's a nice girl so we'll all focus on getting to know one another."

"I appreciate it mom," Jae Sun said. "It might be a little difficult but sometime soon I'd like to bring her to Washington so she can meet the rest of the family."

"Does she have any living family besides her parents?" JJ asked.

"No, her grandparents passed away a few years ago if I recall," Jae Sun said. "There's a coven of sorts that Sojiro is still really close with so I guess that could be considered family but they're in China. At least Mr. Chen and his mate are. I don't know about the rest. One was an English missionary, the other was a deserter from the German army during WW2 and I assume Mr. Li and his mate are still in China but I've only met Mr. and Mrs. Chen and it was briefly."

"These are the former inmates Sojiro befriended correct?" Eun Mi asked.

"Yeah," Jae Sun said. "Honestly, I think at least one of them returned to Europe. In fact, I think it was the German but don't quote me."

"If they want us all to meet, they'll bring it up," JJ said. "So has there been any talk of you and Keiko getting married?"

"Very little," Jae Sun answered. "I've told Keiko I want to and she does too but I don't think Sojiro's open to the topic yet. He's still getting to know me."

"You marrying Sojiro or Keiko?" Eun So teased.

"The man has a right to be discerning," JJ asserted. "Do her parents speak English?"

"Sojiro does. Hanako knows some English but not very much," Jae Sun said.

"I can speak with her in Japanese," Eun Mi offered.

When Christmas rolled around, everyone met up at the Cullen house early for breakfast, opening presents and for Jae Sun's birthday. It was good to see everyone after all this time. He didn't recognize Tristan and Lilliana at first for how much they'd grown since last he saw them. Same with Lee. He finally got to meet Salem's and Yvonne's new son Jae and Ahiga's and Nesia's son DJ. He asked Lee about college and congratulated him on a scout being sent out to see him play although that would be in February from what Lee knew. The exact date and game Lee didn't know and likely wouldn't know until after the scout saw what he needed and would make a decision. Jae Sun was pleasantly surprised to see Evalynn and Shyann at the party thinking she was still in college, but Evalynn affirmed she'd gotten through her last year of school, she'd passed the BAR exams in New York and in Washington and she was interning at Kevin's law firm in New York although she and Shyann were planning to return to Washington after a year.

"How does it feel to finally be out of school?" Jae Sun asked.

"A little weird if I'm honest," Evalynn said. "I'm happy to finally get myself into my field, though. The commute's a bitch I must say."

"Where are you living?"

"We have a place in Queens," Evalynn said. "The sooner we can leave New York the better – it's too fucking expensive."

"See, Evalynn and I are in disagreement over this point," Shyann smiled. "I love New York. It's a blast! There's so much to do and the club I work at gets really high profile clientele and they pay very, very well. One night I left with $2000."

"Holy shit," Jae Sun responded.

"It's the only reason we aren't being forced to get a roommate," Evalynn agreed.

"Does anyone know you two are 'together' or do they think you're roommates?" Jae Sun asked.

"They think we're roommates," Evalynn said. "There's a gay bar we love in Flushing that we go to all the time and they know we're together."

"They even gave us free drinks when we told them it was our anniversary," Shyann smiled. "I've tried to convince Evalynn to let us live in New York longer but alas: she will not be moved."

"I'm happy to visit New York; I just don't want to live there," Evalynn said.

"Yes, yes, so you've said," Shyann said with exaggerated exasperation as she gulped down her eggnog then started giggling when Evalynn slapped her knee playfully. "But with all the extra money I'm making, by the time we finally come back to Washington, we'll be able to afford to buy a house."

"Not too shabby," Jae Sun said.

Jae Sun enjoyed the rest of his time in Washington catching up with everyone and going out with the pack on patrol for old time's sake. When it was time to go back, Eun Mi and JJ brought Jae Sun to the airport and they promised to get back to him about when they could come to Tokyo to meet Keiko's parents. Jae Sun didn't make it back to Tokyo until late the next day and he was exhausted. He went straight to his apartment and when he left himself in, he saw Hanako and Keiko in his tiny living space together sitting on the floor with Poki. Hanako was letting Poki nip and hold onto her hand with his claws play fighting while she rubbed his belly.

"Welcome back, Jae Sun," Keiko said and rushed over to greet him. "I hope it's alright but mom wanted to come visit Poki. He's been fed."

"Thank you," Jae Sun answered. He was about to lean down to kiss her but she pulled away and darted her eyes in Hanako's direction and Jae Sun pulled away, getting the hint. "Sorry," he said quietly and Keiko smiled gently.

"It's okay," she replied. "How was your trip?"

"Long overdue," Jae Sun said. "Thank you for helping me with Poki while I was gone."

"It's no trouble. Mom left a note for Hirohito telling him she'd take care of Poki herself and not to worry about him. She even filled out the chart you left." Keiko pointed at the piece of paper having been filled out meticulously with times Poki was fed and even included little notes about when she gave him a treat and how many. "She's threatened to kidnap him several times but father has made it clear she's not to bring a cat home."

"Glad to know Poki made a friend," Jae Sun chuckled. "I talked to my parents about them coming to Tokyo so they can meet Mr. and Mrs. Iwamoto."

"When will they be visiting?"

"I don't know for sure but they promised to come as soon as they can. Dad might need a little time to recover from the holiday but I'm sure we can have our parents acquainted by March at latest."

"That'll be lovely," Keiko smiled. "It will just be your parents right?"

"Yeah; I don't think my brothers and sisters will be able to come to Japan any time soon. I'd still like to take you to Washington someday though."

"We'll figure something out," Keiko smiled. They heard Poki release a loud meow and he finally rushed over to Jae Sun with his tail up then going to his legs to rub up against him while he purred.

"It's about time you welcomed me home," Jae Sun smiled and kneeled down so he could start petting Poki. "ポキ夫人岩本お世話になりましたありがとうございます," (Poki fujin Iwamoto osewaninarimashita arigatōgozaimasu / Thank you for looking after Poki Mrs. Iwamoto) Jae Sun said.

"それは喜びだった," (Sore wa yorokobidatta / It was a pleasure) Hanako said. "ポキは最愛の小さな猫です. もう一度町を出る必要がある場合は、喜んで彼の面倒をみます." (Poki wa saiai no chīsana nekodesu. Mōichido machi o deru hitsuyō ga aru baai wa, yorokonde kare no mendō o mimasu / Poki is a darling little cat. If you ever need to go out of town again I'm happy to look after him.)

"覚えておきます," (Oboete okimasu / I'll remember that) Jae Sun said."恵子さんに言っていたのですが、両親が東京に来るので、みんなで会えると話しました." (Megumisan ni itte ita nodesuga, ryōshin ga Tōkyō ni kuru node, min'na de aeru to hanashimashita / I was telling Keiko: I spoke with my parents about them coming to Tokyo so you can all meet.)

"それは素晴らしいことだろう," (Sore wa subarashī kotodarou / That would be wonderful)Hanako smiled. "JJ と Eun Mi Dauer, 私は正しいですか？" (JJ to Eun Mi Dauer, Watashi wa tadashīdesu ka? / JJ and Eun Mi Dauer, am I right?)

"それは正しい," (Sore wa tadashī / That's right)Jae Sun said. "両親がチケットと日付を設定した瞬間にお知らせします." (Ryōshin ga chiketto to hidzuke o settei shita shunkan ni oshirase shimasu / I will let you know the moment my parents have their tickets and a date set.)

"完全. 彼らにまた会えることを楽しみにしています. そして私たち全員が正式にお互いを知るようになることを楽しみにしています. 私たちが最初にあなたの両親に会ったとき、私たちは恐ろしい第一印象を与えたのではないかと心配しています." (Kanzen. Karera ni mata aeru koto o tanoshiminishiteimasu. Soshite watashitachi zen'in ga seishiki ni otagai o shiru yō ni naru koto o tanoshiminishiteimasu. Watashitachi ga saisho ni anata no ryōshin ni atta toki, watashitachi wa osoroshī daiichiinshō o ataeta node wanai ka to shinpai shite imasu / Perfect. I look forward to seeing them again and all of us getting to know one another formally. I fear when we first met your parents we made a dreadful first impression.)

"大丈夫です," (Daijōbudesu / It's alright) Jae Sun said. "それは真夜中で、私たちはあなたに課しました." (Sore wa mayonaka de, watashitachi wa anata ni kashimashita / It was the middle of the night and we imposed on you.)

Hanako smiled reassuringly and said, "過去です. 心配する必要はありません. 私たち全員が出会うとき、それは新たなスタートになります." (Kakodesu. Shinpai suru hitsuyō wa arimasen. Watashitachi zen'in ga deau toki, sore wa aratana sutāto ni narimasu / It's in the past. No need to worry about it. When we all meet it will be a new start.)

"楽しみにしています," (Tanoshiminishiteimasu / I look forward to it)Jae Sun smiled. "それまでは、来週末に会いましょう. ポキを連れてきて、あなたの庭を楽しんでもらいましょう." (Sore made wa, raishū-sue ni aimashou. Poki o tsurete kite, anata no niwa o tanoshinde moraimashou / Until then, let's meet next weekend. I can bring Poki so he can enjoy your garden.)

"日曜日の6時に私たちの家に来て、宗次郎と話をします," (Nichiyōbi no roku-ji ni watashitachi no ie ni kite, sōjirō to hanashi o shimasu / Come to our house at six on Sunday and I will have a talk with Sojiro)Hanako said and then looked at Keiko. "ジェサンが戻ってきたので、家に帰ったほうがいいです." (Jesan ga modotte kitanode,-ka ni kaetta hō ga īdesu / Now that Jae Sun has returned, we had better go home.)

"もう少し長く滞在したくないですか？" (Mōsukoshi nagaku taizai shitakunaidesu ka? / Are you sure you don't want to stay a little longer?)Jae Sun offered.

"いいえ、私たちは去る必要があるのではないかと思います. 遅くて恵子は朝仕事をしている," (Īe, watashitachiha saru hitsuyō ga aru node wanai ka to omoimasu. Osokute Keiko wa asa shigoto o shite iru / No, I'm afraid we need to leave. It's late and Keiko has work in the morning)Hanako said.

"大丈夫; 私はあなたを連れ出します," (Daijōbu; watashi wa anata o tsuredashimasu / Alright; I'll walk you out)he replied and led them back to the front door. "Can we meet for lunch tomorrow?" Jae Sun asked Keiko while she was putting on her shoes.

"I would love that," Keiko said. "I will meet you in the lobby. Same time?"

"I'll be there," Jae Sun said.

He resisted giving her a kiss and instead said goodbye to Hanako and Keiko and watched after them until they made it to the elevator. As planned, the next day Jae Sun arrived at the office staying in the lobby 10 to noon waiting for Keiko to come down. Once she made it downstairs, they went to a local ramen shop and Jae Sun quickly put in his order while Keiko found a small table for them. A few minutes later, Jae Sun came back with a giant bowl of ramen, a side bowl of rice, a bowl of kimchi and another small bowl with toasted seaweed.

"They have kimchi," Jae Sun announced joyously as he took his seat.

"That is pickled cabbage right?"

"Spicy pickled cabbage, yes," Jae Sun said and took a bite of that first. It would do. It wasn't Eun Mi's kimchi or even his own kimchi but it was still good. "Not as good as my mom's but it'll do."

"That's an unfair comparison," Keiko smiled and looked at his bowl. "You got the pork right?"

"Yeah and I made sure to ask for spicy," Jae Sun said.

"I've never understood the appeal of spicy food," Keiko said. "Why eat something when it causes pain?"

"Because it's delicious," Jae Sun answered with a light laugh. "My siblings and I grew up on spicy food. Mom was never shy with the gochugaru and we're stronger for it."

Keiko giggled, "Or just have hardier stomachs."

"That too," Jae Sun said and started indulging in his ramen. Once he finished his first slurp, chewed and swallowed, he said, "Although mom tones down the spice for dad. He likes spicy but not nearly as much as us kids."

"You said he doesn't eat meat either, right?"

"Nope," Jae Sun shook his head, "my grandma swore off meat when she was a kid, my grandpa stopped eating meat out of solidarity and my dad picked it up from grandma and never changed. My uncle and aunt eat meat though."

"Why did she swear off meat?"

"I think it was because she watched my great grandpa butcher a salmon or an elk one time and it shocked her so bad she didn't want to eat it."

"Oh," Keiko said, "I suppose that could scare a little kid. And your great grandpa is still alive?"

"Yeah," Jae Sun said, "and has been chief for…." He took a moment to recall, "36 years. He became chief during the Second World War although I'm a little fuzzy on the exact date. He became chief when he was," he stopped again trying to do the math in his head, "shit, how old is that man again?"

"100?" Keiko asked jokingly and Jae Sun chuckled.

"He's damn close I'm sure," he answered and continued to think. "He was born in….1889? I think? Wait, no, he was 18 when he married my great grandma - that was back in 1901…..so he's at least 97. So you actually were really close."

"And here I was joking," Keiko giggled.

"So that means he was 61 when he became chief," Jae Sun said.

"That's impressive," Keiko said.

"Especially for a man born near the turn of the century," Jae Sun agreed. "My uncle Kevin's heir to become chief after my great grandpa but if I'm honest, it's a bit of a silent agreement that Grandpa Jacob doesn't need to step down as chief any time soon."

"At least there's no bad blood over ascension to the throne," Keiko said. She was quiet briefly while Jae Sun had more of his ramen slurping the noodles as he went and once he'd finished, Keiko said, "I'm sorry about last night."

"What?"

"About not letting you kiss me," she explained bashfully.

"Hey, it's okay," Jae Sun assured, "I wasn't thinking. I should've been mindful about your mom being there."

"Thank you for being so understanding," Keiko said. "Do you want to wait until February or should I tell my parents I'll be late on Saturday?"

Jae Sun looked at her for a moment tempted by the offer but deep down not being ready. He knew Keiko wanted this to be special and was trying to make it special; he wanted to do his part in the whole endeavor and wanted to avoid any sense of their time together being cheap by any means necessary.

"Not this Saturday," he finally said. "I'm bringing Poki to your parents' house on Sunday remember?"

"Oh," she said and her shoulders slumped as she blushed, "right." She sighed a little. "My birthday idea isn't going how I'd planned."

"This isn't for my birthday," Jae Sun said, "this is for both of us."

Keiko's blushed deepened and she averted her eyes to look at the table. "Keiko," Jae Sun said, "We can shelf this whole thing for another time if you're uncomfortable."

"I'm only anxious," Keiko said. "I just don't know what to expect except for…I suppose the obvious. Have you ever done this before?"

"It's been a while," Jae Sun said. "I haven't dated anyone since I lived in Washington so it's been years."

"Oh," Keiko mumbled as she looked up at him again.

"Everything will be okay," Jae Sun said. "I can get us a room closer to Valentine's Day and I'll make sure it's special."

"But if it's for Valentine's Day, I have to do it," Keiko said. "You would do something for White Day."

"White Day?" Jae Sun asked.

"It's in March," Keiko said. "On Valentine's Day a girl gives her boyfriend a gift and then on White Day the boy gives his girlfriend a gift."

"Oh," Jae Sun said. "Good thing you told me because I've never heard of White Day before. In that case, I'll let you handle Valentine's Day and come White Day, I'll have something special lined up."

"Okay," Keiko smiled.

Back in Washington, Lee was getting prepared for when the scout would finally come. Every time there was a game, Lee always checked the bleachers hoping he might notice a guy in a suit that looked a little out of place or someone in a Michigan letterman jacket. Tristan and Lilliana weren't at every game but they made a point to be at as many games as they could be. Then at the start of February, Lee and his team had a game against a school in Hoquiam and it would be at their rink. Tristan wasn't originally planning to go but Lilliana insisted saying she 'had a feeling'. Between traffic and the weather, it was a nearly three hour drive so they didn't get there in time for the start of the game. Once they entered the arena, Lee was already on the ice and the score was Lee's team at 4 and their opponents at 7.

"Shit," Lilliana said when she saw the scoreboard.

"Hey, it's only an hour into the game. They've got time to turn things around," Tristan said and started looking around until they heard a loud whistle. They looked in the direction of the sound and Boris was towards the front waving for them to come over. Lilliana and Tristan rushed over and took their seats next to them. "Did you guys happen to see the scout?"

"Yes," Boris said and pointed to the other side of the rink where a man was sitting in a pair of jeans, a heavy jacket and a notepad.

"You're sure that's him?" Tristan asked.

"Positive," Boris said. "His briefcase has the Michigan University logo."

"Has Lee noticed him?" Lilliana asked.

"No, he's been focused on the game," Boris said. "As he should be."

In the meantime, Lee rushed around on the ice to get the puck and finally got it. Once he'd gotten it, Lee maneuvered around the opposing players and passed the puck to one of his teammates. Lee got further down the rink closer to the opposing goal and once he was there, his teammate did a quick movement to get out of the way of the opposing team and hit the puck in Lee's direction. One of the other opponents rushed for the puck and nearly got to it when Lee shoved the guy to one side causing him to fly into the side of the rink while Lee got the puck to the goal and hit it hard enough for the puck to hover above the ice and then it slammed into the goal just as the goalie was moving to intercept it. The crowd roared and Lilliana clapped eagerly while Boris kept his eyes on the scout. The scout watched the whole display and after Lee made the goal, he watched the scout write something down.

Lee drifted away from the opposing goal catching his breath and glancing at the scoreboard. They were now 5 to 7 – there was still time to turn the game around. His eyes darted over the crowd and he noticed Lilliana and Tristan. When Lilliana noticed he was looking, she smiled and waved eagerly at him and he waved back. He also noticed Boris seemingly staring off in one direction and he followed his stare noticing a man in jeans and a heavy coat with a notepad. When he noticed him, Lee's eyes went wide and he rushed across the ice to meet with his teammates.

"Lee noticed the scout," Illyana said quietly.

"Не теряй концентрацию, Анатолий," (Ne teryay kontsentratsiyu, Anatoliy / Don't lose focus, Anatoli) Boris said under his breath.

A new round started and when it did, Lee stole the puck and bolted for the other side of the rink like a bat out of hell. Before long, the other team was on his tail and tried to intercept him but Lee glanced back to see one of his teammates and another teammate being near the goal and the way between them clear. So he hit the puck behind him to his teammate who then hit the puck towards the goal. Their other teammate grabbed the puck after the goalie blocked it then his it again this time getting it into the goal.

Lilliana was on the edge of her seat the whole game. The other team managed to get two more goals but each time they did, Lee was there to earn another point in his team's favor or, at the very least, make sure the other team didn't get another goal. The game lasted another hour and a half before it ended and Lee's team won the game by 1 point. Boris glanced at the scout hoping he might be able to tell what the man was thinking but he was stoic and focused. He worried the game might be too close. Once the game was over, the scout stayed in his seat seeming to go over everything while Tristan, Lilliana, Boris and Illyana left the bleachers so they could meet up with Lee. Once he finally got out, Tristan and Lilliana were the first to greet him.

"I thought you guys couldn't make it," Lee said when Tristan and Lilliana approached him.

"Lilli had a feeling we needed to get here. Good thing we did too; we noticed the scout," Tristan said.

"Yeah, I noticed him about half way through the game," Lee said.

"That was a close game, Lee," Boris said, "but you did well."

"Thanks dad," Lee said. "I just hope the scout agrees."

"He has to," Lilliana said. "You stonewalled Hoquiam and gave yourselves a chance to recover."

"Exactly," Boris praised and patted Lee's shoulder. He noticed the man from the bleachers approaching and when he did, Boris tapped Lee's shoulder, pointed in the other direction and Lee turned where his father was pointing. He waited a moment until the man finally came over.

"Anatoli Aleyev?" the man asked.

"Yeah," Lee said, "Lee's fine."

"I'm Hal Geyser from Michigan State University. Do you mind if we talk a moment?"

"Sure," Lee said and told everyone he'd be back in a moment then followed the scout down the hall so they could speak privately. "Thanks so much for being here."

"No, thank you for having me," Mr. Geyser said. "That was a damn good game you played, Lee. Good offense, fantastic defense and you worked amazing with your team. I for one think you would be a great addition to our school's Hockey Team."

Lee released a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding in and smiled, "Holy shit."

"Would you be able to make a trip to Michigan to talk to one of our administrators? I'll put you down as qualifying for a scholarship and they'll walk you through what that looks like, what is and isn't covered and what's required from you to ensure that scholarship stays in effect."

"Absolutely! Just tell me when and I'll make it happen," Lee said.

"I'm glad to hear it," Mr. Geyser smiled and pulled something out from the folder he had tucked under his arm and handed that over to Lee. "Here's a list of everything you'll need to make sure you bring for your appointment as well as the number to our admin office. I'll be back in Michigan tomorrow and first thing Monday I'll alert an administrator to contact you. Is the number you listed on your application still going to be the best contact number?"

"Yes, that'll work," Lee said. "The admin will probably speak with my mom or an aunt – we all live together. Whoever answers, they'll know when to set it up for."

"Good," Mr. Geyser said. "Here's my business card as well is you run into any issues or have questions. While you're in Michigan, you'll meet the coach and may meet the team as well but the coach will be a certainty."

"Thank you, Mr. Geyser. I can't wait," Lee said. Mr. Geyser offered a hand and Lee accepted it so they could shake.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Lee. I'll see you again soon and I'll make sure admin calls you Monday."

"Thank you so much," Lee answered and Mr. Geyser released him so he could walk away. Once he was gone, Boris was quickly at his side with his hand out requesting to see what Mr. Geyser had given him so he could read it while Illyana, Tristan and Lilliana were thrilled and hugging him.

"I'm so proud of you, Lee," Illyana praised and started kissing his cheek.

"This is great Lee! You're getting a full ride!" Tristan said.

"Not so fast," Boris said, "we still need to talk to that administrator – there may be hidden costs."

"Mr. Aleyev, please don't be so pessimistic," Lilliana pleaded.

"Pessimism is a powerful tool, милая," (milaya / dear) Boris said.

"Don't listen to him, Lee; you're on your way to being a pro-player," Lilliana said and finally took her turn to hug him. When she did, Lee briefly forgot what they'd even been talking about and was focused on Lilliana until she released him. "You just have to promise you'll come back to Washington to visit any chance you get okay?"

"Definitely," Tristan agreed.

"Illyana," Boris said, "when they call, schedule for as soon as possible but allow time for us to drive to and from Michigan and for Lee to give work advance notice."

"You're driving there?" Lilliana asked as though they were crazy.

"Of course we're driving," Lee chuckled, "it's cheaper than flying."

"You guys are insane," Lilliana mumbled.

Since they were all there, Boris took them all out somewhere so the kids could eat and hang out together. On Monday while Lee was at school, an administrator from the school called as promised and Illyana spoke with them at length getting the appointment set allowing them time to arrange time off from work, school and to allow them time to drive to Michigan. A few weeks after the game, Boris and Lee packed up and made the drive to Michigan. In true Boris fashion, they stopped only when they absolutely had to, Lee slept in the car at night and Boris drove through the day and through the night and they made it to East Lansing the evening before Lee's appointment. They got a hotel and Lee went straight to bed so he could get a decent night's sleep. When Lee woke the next morning, the hotel room smelled of pork and rye. He opened his eyes and saw a plate of holodets, some mustard with two giant boiled potatoes some black bread and a big bottle of vodka.

"You made breakfast?" Lee asked as he sat up and rubbed his eyes.

"Your mother made it," Boris said, "I just heated it up. The vodka was my addition, though." Lee smiled while Boris chuckled a little and poured two shots. Lee still couldn't believe that even as a vampire the man would take back a shot like it was the best thing on earth. He brought that over and sat at the end of the bed handing Lee his share. "I know I've been very hard on you and it might seem as though I'm not excited but I am."

"I know, dad," Lee smiled. "Thanks for being so supportive. Me wanting to go pro's a big dream – any other dad might say I was being unrealistic but you never stopped helping me make it a possibility."

"There are so many things I could never do when I was your age," Boris relayed then shrugged, "by the time I was your age I was in the army and the only dream I could have was advancement in my military career and even that could only go so far." Boris was thoughtful a moment. "I didn't know at the time," Boris continued, "but your mother was pregnant with you when she and your brother died. My memories of life before I was changed are so fuzzy but that morning is burned into my mind clear as day. That day haunted me everyday afterwards. When Anatoli brought all of you back and told me we'd lost you that day too….it was like rubbing salt in my wounds. I had a second chance and I wasn't about to squander it. I wanted better for all of you but I never wanted any of you to forget how fortunate you are."

"Believe me, I remember," Lee smiled. "I barely remember Moscow but what I do remember is cramped."

Boris laughed, "Yes, but you made the most of it. Do you remember the boy a few doors down who you'd play with every Sunday?"

"Vaguely," Lee said. "I want to say his name was Alexei but I may be remembering that wrong."

"You're right, it was Alexei," Boris said. "His father worked for the train station and they shared the apartment with his two brothers and parents."

"I don't remember all that," Lee said. "I wonder how much Moscow's changed since I was a kid."

"Quite a bit I'd imagine," Boris said. "Well, in any case, your appointment's in two hours so eat your breakfast and take a shower." Boris tapped his shot glass against Lee's and then they took back their shots. Boris stood and Lee got out of bed going to the desk so he could eat his breakfast. Anyone else might see this and think it looked gross or sad but to Lee it was like a big hug.

After having breakfast, Lee took a much needed shower and once he was dressed, they left the hotel going straight to the university and once they made it to the correct building and went inside, they were directed to the administrator they would be meeting with. Boris was quiet to start allowing the administrator to go over everything while Lee listened and Boris read through all the paperwork and the terms and conditions of the scholarship as well as what was covered under that scholarship. Boris grabbed a highlighter and went over all the most important bits and handed that over to Lee once he was finished and that paved the way for Lee to ask important follow up questions.

After over an hour, Lee agreed and applied his signature. Lee still wasn't sure what he wanted to major in so the administrator recommended scheduling him to take his prerequisites giving him time to think over what he wanted to study although Boris made it clear he needed to make up his mind sooner rather than later. Once that was all sorted out, the administrator gave Lee directions to the Munn Ice Arena where he would meet the coach.

At the ice rink once they'd gone up to the front desk and advised why they were there, the front desk manager showed them to the coach's office so Lee could meet him. Practice wouldn't be for several hours so the coach led Lee out to the ice rink, gave Lee some skates and made him do some warm ups and drills the team would be put through during practice to gauge Lee's skill level. The coach then invited Lee and Boris to come back to the ice rink to oversee what practice looked like and so Lee could meet the team. It was late by the time Lee and Boris finally got back to the hotel but once they had, Lee was still too excited to sleep. Boris stayed up with Lee playing cards and having a few shots of vodka together before Lee finally fell asleep. Boris allowed Lee to sleep in but once it was 10, he got Lee out of bed so they could make the drive back to Washington. It was long and grueling and Lee wished he could just stay in Michigan. He reminded himself he would be graduating that year, his scholarship was set up, he was accepted and once he graduated and got his new student package from the school, he'd be back in Michigan in July. Despite all the excitement, though, Lee's mind still wandered to Lilliana. Once he was in Michigan, he'd never see her. At least, not until holidays when he was back in Washington. It was the only drawback to this otherwise dream come true.

"Dad?" Lee asked at one point during the long drive after spending hours with Lilliana on his mind.

"What?" Boris asked.

"How did you know you were in love with mom?" The question took Boris off guard and he looked at Lee strangely for a moment.

"Why do you ask?"

"I was just curious," Lee lied. Boris continued to stare at Lee for a moment but he eventually returned his eyes to the road and shrugged.

"I don't know exactly when it happened," Boris said. "When I first met your mother, she was 16, I was 25 and our parents were setting us up. The two of us getting married was a foregone conclusion if our fathers had anything to say about it. I thought she was a pretty girl but 'pretty' isn't worth a damn. Any girl can be pretty but a woman worth marrying knows how to manage a home and a family and can make a good meal even in the worst of times. I was certainly attracted with her when we first met. I like to think your mother thought I was attractive too but your mother and I are both very sensible: a pretty face is worthless without a man or woman to accompany it. The first time we went to her family's home for dinner, Illyana was responsible for cooking and she made piroshky – some with meat and some with potato. She made sure I got more meat piroshky than potato and that's when I knew if I married her, I would be content."

"So you grew to love mom after you two got married?"

"Oh no, I loved her before then," Boris said. "After months of courting, having dinner together with our parents, going on walks together – I started looking forward to seeing her more and more. I thought about her all the time, I would send her presents any time I could even if they were only wild flowers I picked myself and then, one day, when we were in line to see the body of Vladimir Lenin, that's when I knew I loved her. It wasn't any one thing she said or did while we were in line – it was just a realization."

"You realized you loved mom while in line to see a dead body?" Lee asked quizzically.

"That 'dead body' was a patriot and a true hero of the Soviet Union young man; show some respect," Boris said. "And yes, I realized I loved your mother while in line to see Vladimir Lenin and I told her so. She said she felt the same way and that day I went to her father to make the engagement official and within a few weeks, your mother and I were married. Now, what is the true reason you ask?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean you didn't ask me how I knew I loved Illyana because you're 'curious'. Something's on your mind so just tell me what it is," Boris said. Lee signed a little bit and looked out the window a moment before he finally said anything.

"For the past few months I've been…I don't really know what I feel right now," Lee said.

"Firstly, who is this in reference to?"

"Lilliana," Lee admitted. He'd thought Boris would be surprised but he wasn't.

"And what prompted all this?"

"I don't know," Lee said. "One day she was just my friend's sister Lilli then the next she's….Lilliana."

"You're talking nonsense, Lee," Boris said. "Basically what you're saying is one day you found yourself attracted to her, yes?"

"I mean….yes, but it's not just that. I feel drawn to her and I don't know how to explain it. I'll think about her all the time and sometimes I just wonder what she's up to or how she's doing."

"Do Tristan or Lilliana know?"

"I haven't said anything to Lilli," Lee said, "and Tristan made it pretty clear she's off limits. He caught me checking her out once and told me to drop it so I did."

"When did that happen?"

"Last year," Lee said. "I've been keeping all this to myself ever since. I did tell Sergei a while ago and he told me I'm better off focusing on school, work and hockey."

"I agree," Boris said. "You just earned yourself a scholarship and a chance to play college Hockey. You worked hard for that; I won't see you throw it away for anyone, not even Lilli." Lee didn't reply. At the moment he was staring out the window feeling torn. He felt like if he didn't say something, he'd regret it; but what if she didn't think of him that way and he wound up making an ass of himself? "Here's what I'll suggest," Boris said after several minutes of silence and grabbing Lee's attention, "Focus on school and graduating with high grades. That's most important right now. After all that, if you still feel this way, just tell her. Let her know how you've been feeling. The worst she can do is tell you she doesn't feel that way and if she does, then you move on."

Lee took another breath and laid his head against the headrest, "I guess you're right."

Back in Japan, Keiko and Jae Sun continued to see each other on weekends and during lunch every opportunity they could. After their talk at the ramen shop, Keiko remained tight lipped about Valentine's Day. Jae Sun didn't press her about it either. Then on Friday the 6th after work, Keiko came straight to Jae Sun's apartment unexpectedly.

"I didn't realize you were coming. How long can you stay?" Jae Sun asked after letting her in and giving her a big hug.

"I can't stay very long but I needed to give you something," Keiko said and pulled an envelope out of her purse. It was long and thin and clearly stuffed and was a bright red color with a little bow sticker keeping it closed. She held it with both hands offering it to Jae Sun with a bow. Jae Sun fought a laugh and accepted it. Once he was holding it, Keiko stood up straight and put her hand on his to stop him from opening it. "You're not allowed to open it until Sunday morning okay?"

"Why?"

"You'll just have to wait and see," Keiko said, trying to be seductive but it was coming off very bashful and it was precious.

"Keeping me on the edge?" Jae Sun teased with a smile and looked down at the envelope. "Okay, I won't open it until Sunday morning. Will your parents be joining us for whatever you have planned?"

"No," Keiko said. "I have a work function on Sunday so they know I'll be gone all day."

"You do?" Jae Sun asked and Keiko nodded.

"It's a Family Day event," she explained. "Mr. Saito rented out a gymnasium and we're playing games, there's an obstacle course, employees are encouraged to bring their kids – it'll be a big day."

"I bet," Jae Sun said. "Did you want me to come?"

"I've been told I'm to ensure you're there," Keiko smiled. "Have a pen handy. I did make it clear I could not guarantee Poki's presence."

"It would be a letdown for the kids if I didn't," Jae Sun said. "I can always bring him then leave if Poki's getting anxious. Is that what you've got in this envelope?"

"Yes," Keiko said, "But you're still not allowed to open it until Sunday. Promise?"

Jae Sun chuckled gently, "I promise."

"Good," Keiko said. "I'd better go. I didn't tell my parents I'd be late so I don't want to worry them."

"Are you sure you don't want to stay for a bit?" Jae Sun pleaded but Keiko gently shook her head as she blushed and looked down at the floor with a shy smile.

"No, I need to go," Keiko said and then looked up at him, "But I'll see you on Sunday."

"Okay," Jae Sun relented, "I'll see you on Sunday." Jae Sun leaned down to give Keiko a kiss but he deepened it right away. She sighed against him and wrapped her arms around his neck. Keiko eventually pulled away and Jae Sun tried to follow her to no avail. Then she kissed the tip of his nose.

"Until Sunday," Keiko said.

"Yeah," Jae Sun mumbled remorsefully as he let her go. Keiko smiled sweetly and finally walked out of the apartment leaving Jae Sun alone.

Once Keiko had left, Jae Sun put the envelope on his desk and did not touch it until Sunday morning like he'd promised. On Sunday, the first thing he did was grab Keiko's envelope and pulled it open so he could remove what was inside. The first thing he saw was a flyer with the name of her company at the top with '家族の日' (Kazokunohi / Family Day) in big, bold Kanji at the top of the page. There was a picture of a family celebrating right under the kanji and the address of the event as well as the start and end time were right below the image. The event started at 9 and when Jae Sun looked at his clock, it was already 8:30 so he needed to hustle. However, first he looked at the other piece of paper that was folded right behind the flyer. This one was a very simple note in Keiko's handwriting. It listed an address and a time to be there as well as a message that only said, "私達二人だけ." (Watashitachi futaridake / Just the two of us).

Once he'd read that, Jae Sun jumped up from his futon not bothering to fold it back up and started getting ready. He washed up, brushed his teeth, shaved and packed everything in an overnight bag so he could doubly prepare. He got dressed and was about to run out without Poki but remembered the family day flyer and how he'd promised to bring Poki. So Jae Sun packed up several pages, some pencils and got Poki in his carrier with some food before finally rushing out of his apartment going straight to the train station to make it to the event. Once he arrived, there was a man and woman at the entrance letting people in and he recognized them as Keiko's coworkers.

"Dauer-san! あなたが来た！ ここにお越しいただき、誠にありがとうございます," (Anata ga kita! Koko ni okoshi itadaki, makotoni arigatōgozaimasu / You came! It's a pleasure to have you here!) one of her coworkers said and they both bowed. Jae Sun reciprocated with a smile.

"招待されて光栄です. 恵子さんはサインをするつもりだったので、ポキを連れてきて子供たちに本当の星を紹介しようと思いました," (Shōtai sa rete kōeidesu. Keiko-san wa sain o suru tsumoridattanode, poki o tsurete kite kodomo-tachi ni hontō no hoshi o shōkai shiyou to omoimashita / It's an honor to be invited. Keiko said I would be signing autographs so I thought I would bring Poki and introduce the true star to the kids) Jae Sun said and gently lifted the carrier when he mentioned Poki.

"子供たちはわくわくします," (Kodomo-tachi wa wakuwaku shimasu / The children will be thrilled) the male coworker said while the female coworker bowed down so she could look into the carrier and waved at Poki with a big smile.

Jae Sun was directed where he should get set up and once he made it into the gymnasium, there was already a big table set up for him with a sign in front that announced the author & artist of The Misadventures of Popo the Cat would be there for a visit. He went to the table and got Poki's carrier placed down and leaned forward to look inside. Poki was on his belly with his paws visible and his head was looking around in front of him taking in all the noise from the children.

"Your fans await, Poki," Jae Sun said but he didn't open the carrier just yet.

He looked around for Keiko but he couldn't see her right away. Before he could spot her, a child announced that there was a cat on the table and before Jae Sun knew it, there was a big crowd of children of varying ages standing near him eager to meet the cat and most of them had a copy of the first instalment of his manga eager for him to sign. A few mothers in the crowd managed to wrangle the kids and ensure they were politely standing in a group and had them bow to Jae Sun expressing gratitude to him for coming and Jae Sun bowed back thanking them for inviting him to this event. Now that he was surrounded, Jae Sun kept his focus on the kids signing each manga he was offered and once everyone's was signed, he took out Poki and held him while kneeling on the floor so all the children could pet him. He warned all the children to make sure they were gentle when petting Poki.

Poki was a little on edge for a moment but he was very sweet to the kids and sniffed their hands whenever they came close. While the kids were taking turns petting Poki, Jae Sun finally saw Keiko and she was standing near the moms and she smiled when he saw her and waved gently at him. Jae Sun could only smile since his hands were full. Jae Sun was there for nearly two hours signing manga and letting kids pet his cat before he needed to return Poki to his carrier because he was starting to get a little agitated. The parents took their kids away and got them engaged in other activities and finally Keiko was able to walk up to Jae Sun so they could talk.

"Thank you for doing this. I know it was last minute," Keiko said.

"It's no trouble," Jae Sun said. "Last time I did this it was for a Career Day at a school in Seoul. Remember the singles mixer I'd told you about?"

"The one you went to where all the women complained you were too tall?" Keiko asked playfully.

"Yes, that one," Jae Sun smiled. "Speaking of which, I'm surprised no one said anything about my height."

"I asked everyone to be respectful," Keiko said. "Most of my coworkers have already met you anyway so they're not surprised anymore. I'm proud of the children for being so nice."

"Yeah, they were great," Jae Sun said. "Anyway, what I was saying is the woman I'd met at that mixer had a niece that was a huge fan of the comics I published in the newspaper and she wanted to meet me. Weeks later, my friend asks if I'd be willing to come to her niece's school and bring Poki."

"That was sweet of you," Keiko said.

"I felt a little out of place honestly. Most of the parents were in more practical professions like a firefighter. Meanwhile here I am just a humble farmer who makes comics on the side with a goofy cat," Jae Sun said and Keiko giggled. "They also gawked at me a little when I first got there."

"To be fair, your height is shocking if a person isn't expecting it," Keiko said.

"That's true," Jae Sun said and nodded his head gently. The two of them looked at each other a moment before Jae Sun said, "Did you want to leave with me?"

"I have to stay a while longer," Keiko said, "but I'll be out of here by six. You read my note?"

"I did," Jae Sun smiled. "I'll see you at 8 then?"

"I'll see you at 8," Keiko nodded and walked away. Jae Sun bit his lip a little with excitement over what she had planned.

Jae Sun grabbed Poki's carrier and left the gymnasium saying goodbye to people as he passed. He took the train back to his apartment so he could drop off Poki and left his apartment to run some errands. His first order of business was to obtain protection. He was able to find a brand he was familiar with and once he'd done that, he went to another shop to get some flowers. He spotted some pale pink camellia flowers and got a big bouquet of them and sprang for the bouquet to include pink orchids and white roses. Once he had the flowers, Jae Sun returned to the train station so he could go to Shibuya where Keiko's note directed him. He eventually found the right street and continued until he found the building Keiko had named in her note.

The front of the building was traditional with pink neon lights outside listing hourly rates and requesting patrons come inside for more details. Jae Sun walked inside and there was a woman at the front desk ready to welcome him politely although she was briefly taken aback by Jae Sun's height. Jae Sun checked the time: 7:30. He still had time before Keiko would arrive.

"誰かがあなたに加わりますか、それともあなたは夜のための部屋が必要ですか?" (Darekaga anata ni kuwawarimasu ka, soretomo anata wa yoru no tame no heya ga hitsuyōdesu ka? / Will anyone be joining you or do you need a room for the night?) the woman asked Jae Sun.

"ガールフレンドを待っています," (Gārufurendo o matteimasu / I'm waiting for my girlfriend) Jae Sun answered and looked at the rooms on offer. Next to the name of the room was a picture of what that room looked like and most of them were relatively standard. Some were extremely kinky but he just wanted romantic. He noticed one that was set up like a traditional Japanese home with a backdrop of a garden painted on one of the walls from what he could see and the bed available was close to the ground. "ミンカルームを借りることはできますか," (Minkarūmu o kariru koto wa dekimasu ka? / Can I rent the Minka Room?) Jae Sun asked.

"もちろん. 部屋がどれくらい必要になるか知っていますか、それともあなたが去るときに支払いたいですか?" (Mochiron. Heya ga dorekurai hitsuyō ni naru ka shitte imasu ka, soretomo anata ga saru toki ni shiharaitaidesu ka? / Of course. Do you know how long you will need the room or do you wish to pay when you leave?) the woman asked.

"私たちが去るときに支払う," (Watashitachi ga saru toki ni shiharau / Pay when we leave) Jae Sun answered.

He glanced at a few signs one of which stated they only accepted cash and Jae Sun pulled out his wallet to check how much he had compared to how much the room was. He had enough for the night although he doubted they'd be there the entire night. He did want to stay a few hours, though. Jae Sun paid the initial fee to reserve the room so he could stay downstairs and wait for Keiko. The longer he waited, the more anxious he started to feel and he kept glancing at the bouquet feeling a little silly. Then at 8, he heard someone approach outside and then stand by the door seemingly waiting so Jae Sun walked to the door and stepped out to see Keiko.

"Oh," she said when Jae Sun stepped outside, "you're already here."

"Yeah, I reserved the room so we can grab the key and go upstairs. I told her I'd pay before we leave," Jae Sun said.

"It's okay; I'll pay," Keiko said with a blush. "This is my present to you for Valentine's Day. I should pay."

"I'll tell you what," Jae Sun said and leaned down so they were closer, "Don't worry about the initial fee. You can pay for the remainder when we leave but in March, you let me worry about everything, okay?"

"That's fair," Keiko smiled timidly. Then she realized Jae Sun was holding flowers and was enraptured by them. "You got me flowers?"

"Oh, right, I did," Jae Sun said and handed them over to her. "It might be a little corny. I know last time I gave you paper flowers; these ones won't last but I still wanted to get you something."

"They're wonderful, Jae Sun. I love them," she answered with a smile and even got on her toes to give him a peck on the cheek. "Let's go to our room."

Jae Sun nodded and stepped aside so Keiko could come inside. Jae Sun got the key to the room from the woman at the front desk and they walked together through the hallways up the stairs to the floor that catered to the Minka rooms. Jae Sun found the room number and unlocked the door stepping aside so Keiko could go in first. She took in the room and all its traditional splendor. The wall to the right was a giant mural of cherry blossom trees with a stone path leading to a large temple while the bed was on a tiny white frame that was close to the ground and it looked very similar to a futon. The floor was carpet but right in front of the bed was a tatami mat and off to the corner of the room close to the bed was a table with a tiny coffee pot for boiling water and beside that were some loose tea, tea bags and a little tea pot with matching cups. There was a door at the left of the room leading to a bathroom complete with a shower and another door leading to the room holding the toilet and sink.

"This place is really nice," Keiko said. "I was worried it would look cheap."

"I hoped it was a relaxing atmosphere," Jae Sun said. "Some of the rooms were a little crazy for my taste."

"Yes, some of them looked like they were a bit much," Keiko said. She went to the bed placing the flowers down on the pillow then grabbed the pot out of the coffee maker. "Do you want any tea?"

"Sure," Jae Sun answered although he wasn't really interested. He glanced at the bag he'd brought with him holding the box of condoms he'd bought earlier. He went to the other side of the bed from the flowers, took out the box and placed it on the floor so it was out of sight not wanting them to make anything awkward. Once she stepped out of the washroom with a filled pot of water, she put that into the coffee maker and got that started. Then she grabbed the boxes of loose tea to see what they had.

"They only have green tea. Is that okay?"

"That's fine," Jae Sun said and waited while Keiko put the tea into a bag then into the tea pot. After that, Keiko sat on the edge of the bed waiting for the water to finish boiling and it was a little awkward. "Keiko?" Jae Sun said and she looked at him over her shoulder. It was clear to him she was really nervous. Jae Sun got on his knees on the bed crawling to the other side and sat next to Keiko and took her hand. She was blushing profusely and tried to hide it by tucking her head against his shoulder. "How did the rest of Family Day go?"

"It was nice," Keiko said.

"The kids seemed to like seeing Poki," Jae Sun said.

"They were really excited," Keiko agreed. "A few of the kids said Poki liked them more because they heard him purring while they petted him."

"Poki did start purring for a bit," Jae Sun smiled. "I'm sorry to say he wasn't purring from the kids petting him. He started purring because I was scratching his chin."

"No reason to tell the kids that," Keiko giggled. "How did Poki like meeting the kids?"

"I think he could've done without but he's a good sport," Jae Sun said. "Cats as a whole aren't always the most social creatures. Poki's friendly to anyone coming into his domain but when he's in a strange place he gets nervous. That's pretty normal for cats."

"At least he's still really sweet when he's somewhere unfamiliar," Keiko said. "I'm sure he's happy to be back home, though."

"He was," Jae Sun said. "The moment we got back, Poki rushed to his tree to relax and he was still up there even when I filled his food bowl. You know Poki's tired when he's not interested in food."

"I never thought such a thing was possible," Keiko said.

"It's definitely outside the norm," Jae Sun said. He glanced down at Keiko and it seemed like she was finally relaxing a little. Jae Sun lifted her hand up so he could press a kiss to her wrist and to her fingers. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

"I feel alright," Keiko said.

"Are you sure? You've looked nervous since we got here," Jae Sun said.

"I've never been to a place like this before," Keiko said.

"I guess it's not your average hotel," Jae Sun agreed. "Did you want to leave?"

"No," Keiko said. "I just need a moment." When Keiko noticed the coffee pot was finished heating up the water, she stood from the bed and went to pour the hot water into the pot to steep the tea. Jae Sun looked around the room until he found a pen and notepad on one of the side tables. He went to grab that and brought it to the bed inviting Keiko to join him.

"Have you ever played tic-tac-toe?" Jae Sun asked.

"No," Keiko said.

"The goal is to get your letter to go across the tiles uninterrupted. If you do, then you win the game." To give her a quick demonstration, he made 9 blocks total with 2 vertical and 2 horizontal lines. Then he put an O in some and an X in others until there was an X in three boxes going diagonal without interrupted. "This is the goal. And I can make the board as big or as small as we want."

"Okay, I understand," Keiko said. "We can start easy and build our way up."

"Sounds fair," Jae Sun said and tore away the used paper and put a new board on the next page sticking with 2 lines top to bottom for 9 total spaces. "What did you want to be? X or O?"

"I'll be O," Keiko said. "Who's going first?"

"Let's find out," Jae Sun said as he reached into his wallet to pull out a ¥100 coin. "Heads or tails?"

"Heads," Keiko said and Jae Sun flipped the coin. Once he'd caught it, tails was facing up.

"Tails. I go first," Jae Sun announced and put the coin back in his wallet. He decided to put his first X on the top right hand corner of the board. Once he finished his turn, he handed Keiko the pen so she could take her turn. "Did you tell your parents when to expect you back?"

"No," Keiko said as she put an O in the top center box right beside Jae Sun's X. "I told them there would be a company dinner afterwards and that I would be very late." Jae Sun accepted the pen Keiko offered him and he put another X in the center box. He handed the pen back to Keiko so she could take her turn. "I didn't realize how nervous I was until we arrived here." Jae Sun looked at Keiko when she tried offering him the pen so he could take his turn but he'd lost all interest in the game.

"Keiko," Jae Sun said soothingly, "we don't have to do this if you don't want to."

"It's not that I don't want to," Keiko said. "I just don't know where to start." Keiko's cheeks went beet red as she continued to avert her eyes. "It's a little embarrassing."

"You don't have to be embarrassed," Jae Sun reassured. He finally accepted the pen but put it on the small table with the tea and put the notepad next to it. Once there was nothing else on the bed, Jae Sun scooted closer to her and lifted his hand to her face so he could encourage her to finally look at him. "For what it's worth, I'm nervous too."

"Are you?"

Jae Sun nodded and gave her a gentle smile, "It's been a while since I've done anything like this so I'm a bit on edge too."

"I suppose that makes me feel a little better," Keiko said and finally smiled a little. Then Keiko moved a little closer so their faces were just a breath apart. Jae Sun glanced down at her lips but quickly looked into her eyes again. She was still blushing. It contrasted so heavily with her skin and her dark eyes were staring at him so sweetly.

Jae Sun leaned forward just a little more but fell short of kissing her. Keiko was the one to finally close the distance and press her lips against his. She was so gentle when she kissed him but Jae Sun wanted to deepen it. He tilted his head and trailed his hand into Keiko's hair so he could press her more firmly into their kiss. After a moment, Keiko parted her lips and Jae Sun parted his own so their tongues could meet.

Keiko trailed her hands onto Jae Sun's shoulders then wrapped her arms around his neck and when she did, Jae Sun brought Keiko against him then lowered her onto the bed so he was on top of her. Jae Sun hovered above her so she could adjust and Keiko slowly brought her legs onto the bed spreading them so she could cradle Jae Sun's body. When Jae Sun brought his body closer to hers, Keiko's hips were against his lower stomach rather than his pelvis. Once Keiko was comfortably on her back, Jae Sun took his lips away from hers so he could start kissing her neck. He brought his hands to the front of her blouse and slowly unbuttoned it. Keiko sighed and unconsciously lifted her chest when Jae Sun started kissing her chest after parting her shirt. She clutched onto his shirt and started tugging on it. When she did, Jae Sun sat up so he could pull his shirt off before coming back to her.

Keiko watched him remove his shirt and her whole body trembled at the sight of him. He was strong and his skin was tanned from all those years working on the farm. To the world, it would be a scary sight to behold. Jae Sun was this towering figure taller than what Keiko previously ever thought possible combined with sheer strength. Yet when she saw him, she wasn't scared or intimidated by him. Rather, she found his size to be comforting – like the man could literally take on the world. After he'd removed his shirt and was coming back to her, Keiko wrapped her arms around his neck again and kissed him passionately.

Jae Sun's hands trailed over her waist and her breasts. He felt the soft material of her bra then started tugging on it wanting to remove it. He reached behind her so he could unclip her bra and he pulled away from her again so he could remove her shirt and bra. This time, Jae Sun didn't come back to her once her shirt and bra were off. Instead, he took in her figure marveling at her pale skin and her demure breasts. When he took a hold of her breasts, her whole body trembled and her heart was racing.

"Have I ever told you how beautiful you are?" Jae Sun asked and his question made her blush again.

"Not like this," Keiko finally answered bashfully. Jae Sun's smile broadened and he lifted Keiko up so he was holding her against his chest. His hands went lower to take a hold of her ass so he could ensure they were eye level with one another.

"Well," Jae Sun said, "You're beautiful."

Keiko smiled and gave Jae Sun another kiss picking up where they'd left off. Jae Sun turned on his knees and got further onto the bed before laying Keiko back down while they kissed. Keiko kept her arms wrapped around Jae Sun's neck unsure what else to do. Meanwhile, Jae Sun trailed his hands further up until he reached the top of her skirt. It took him a moment to find the zipper but once he had, he pulled it down but left her panties on. He had to pull away again to toss her skirt aside and this time when he returned to her, he went straight for her chest.

He took a hold of her breasts and pressed a kiss to her throat to start before kissing his way down her chest until he reached her breasts. Once Jae Sun was kissing between her breasts, he slowly moved his right hand over her body until he reached her panties. He touched between her legs with her panties blocking his touch while he started kissing his way to her left breast. His fingers started coming back up the closer he came to her nipple until he was able to get his fingers into her panties. Once he finally took her nipple into his mouth, he touched the bundle of nerves at the apex of her entrance and the foreign sensations made Keiko gasp and moan all at once.

Keiko brought her hand to Jae Sun's head combing her fingers through his short hair trying to press her body up against him. Jae Sun's finger was moving in a small circle around the bundle of nerves while his tongue swirled around her nipple making her whole body tingle and Keiko's mind was going completely blank. All her previous hesitation was melting away as she savored the heightened sensations she was experiencing. Jae Sun then started kissing his way to her other breast and taking her right nipple into his mouth to suck on the skin. As he did, he slipped his fingers inside her and used his thumb against her clitoris making Keiko cry out again.

She was so warm and wet; it made Jae Sun groan into Keiko's skin and his other hand grabbed a hold of her panties but didn't pull them down just yet. He could hear her heart pounding matching the rhythm of his own. Keiko trailed her hands over Jae Sun's shoulders and back and tried to lift her legs to wrap around Jae Sun's waist. However he was too elevated and she couldn't get her legs up high enough to wrap around him. Jae Sun continued touching her until she began to gyrate more fervently the closer she came to her release. When he noticed the change, Jae Sun removed his fingers and leaned further so he could reach the box on the other side of the bed to grab a condom.

When Jae Sun removed his fingers from inside her, Keiko whimpered sorrowfully but she kept her eyes closed until she felt Jae Sun leave the bed. She opened her eyes to see Jae Sun removing the last articles of clothing he had until he was nude. She'd never seen the naked male body in the flesh before and seeing Jae Sun like this made her blush and she laid her head down on the mattress staring at the ceiling as her pulse skyrocketed. She heard the sound of a plastic package being opened and she started trembling. She was so nervous but didn't want to admit it to Jae Sun. When he finally came back to the bed and was hovering on top of her, he saw hesitation in her eyes. He gently trailed his hands over her arms so he could take both her hands in his reassuringly.

"Do you want me to stop?" he asked. Keiko wasn't expecting him to ask her that and it took her a moment to reply. She realized, though, that she didn't want to stop. She wanted to share this with Jae Sun and for him to be the only man she would ever love this way.

"No," Keiko finally answered. Her blush deepened when the full extent of her feelings crossed her mind in that moment. "Go slow?"

"I will," Jae Sun promised with a loving smile and leaned down so he could give her a kiss.

While they kissed, Jae Sun brought one hand between them so he could guide his erection inside her. It was such a strange sensation but when he pushed inside and began to enter her a little at a time, the intrusion frightened her. It felt like too much and she was terrified it was going to hurt. She held onto Jae Sun bracing herself for what she thought would be the worse but aside from some mild pressure and a brief discomfort, it didn't hurt at all. He entered slowly just as she'd requested giving her time to adjust to his entry and by the time he was fully inside her, she only felt pleasure. She felt full and warm and like nothing could touch or harm her.

She moaned his name and Jae Sun began to thrust but ensured he kept his pace gentle to start. Jae Sun stayed on top of her for a moment but the position quickly became awkward. Keiko wanted to hold onto him but with their position, she could only have her head planted against his chest with her arms around his waist. So Jae Sun sat up sitting on his heels and lifted Keiko up with him until she was sitting on his lap. Jae Sun brought Keiko's arms around his neck and kept his hands on her hips to guide her up and down on his length. Keiko's face rested against his chest as she took in this new sensation reveling in how it all felt.

Jae Sun lifted her up and down on his own for several minutes tilting his head down as best he could so they could kiss one another. Keiko took over the movement and pushed Jae sun onto his back. When Keiko was on top, she moved her hips very slowly suddenly feeling extremely self conscience with her position but Jae Sun took a hold of her hips and encouraged her to move faster. Keiko kept herself upright with her hands on Jae Sun's strong chest and with Jae Sun's encouragement she quickly lost that sense of self consciousness in favor of pleasure. Since Keiko was moving her hips on her own, Jae Sun reached up so he could take a hold of her breasts and pinched her nipples gently causing her to whimper and her head fell back. She stopped for a moment but picked back up after a moment going faster than before.

"Jae Sun," Keiko moaned.

"Are you close, Keiko?" Jae Sun asked but was already bringing his right hand down between her legs so he could touch the bundle of nerves with his thumb. When he touched her, she cried out and started moving faster.

Jae Sun made sure he continued to rub her clitoris using her body's natural moisture until Keiko stopped moving suddenly with her nails digging into the skin on his chest as she achieved orgasm. When she did, Jae Sun turned over so he was on top of her and took over the movement. Keiko wrapped her arms around his waist holding onto Jae Sun as he moved faster until he finally reached his own release. Once he had, Jae Sun fell to one side so he wasn't on top of Keiko but held her close and kissed the top of her head.

"It's a little early," Keiko said in a small voice, "but Happy Valentine's Day."

"It's the best Valentine's Day I've ever had," Jae Sun said and moved Keiko further up so their faces were level. "Thank you for this Keiko."

"I'm happy I could do something special for you," Keiko smiled and kissed his nose. Then she tucked her face into his shoulder affectionately. "I love you, Jae Sun."

"I love you too," Jae Sun answered and started kissing the top of her head.