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Minjeong slowly blinks herself awake, suddenly very aware of how quiet the house has become.
The stillness is jarring, and as she reaches to turn the bedside lamp on she’s annoyed to find it not working.
It’s in this moment, as she lets out a deep sigh and watches as her breath condensates into the open air, does she realize exactly what is happening.
Normally, she’d go and investigate herself, but this wasn’t their house and after the long trek out here she was in no mood to deal with this alone.
“Jimin.”
“Mm.”
“Jimin.” Minjeong says louder this time, delivering a swift smack to Jimin’s sleeping figure for good measure.
“Jeongie?” Jimin mumbles, finally emerging from underneath her portion of the sheets, eyes still firmly closed.
Minjeong sighs at Jimin’s sluggish response. “It’s cold.”
Even in her half-awake state Jimin manages to process Minjeong’s words, nodding dutifully before shuffling across the mattress.
Minjeong suddenly finds herself pulled into the taller woman’s arms as Jimin drapes herself over her, and though it's a sweet gesture, it’s definitely not what Minjeong had in mind.
Still, Minjeong gently turns into Jimin, allowing herself a moment to sink into the embrace. One thing about Jimin was that no matter the weather, she was like a human space heater, a convenient perk especially during the winter months.
It’s so comforting that she almost drifts back to sleep, but knows she’d rather deal with a sleep deprived wife over frozen pipes.
“Ack!” Jimin startles then, flinching as a set of rogue teeth knock against her collarbone. “Did you just bite me?” Jimin asks in disbelief, now fully awake.
Minjeong simply buries herself further into the crook of Jimin’s neck, her next words coming out muffled against clammy skin. “Please go check the thermostat.”
“Uh, yeah okay.” Jimin huffs out in exasperation, but is never one to complain. “You know you have to let go for me to leave the bed right?”
“Mm.” Minjeong grunts, begrudgingly releasing her heat source as sleepiness begins to overtake her senses. “Be quick.”
“Of course, jagiya.” Jimin drawls out into a sneer, seemingly irked by the younger’s incessant demands. It’s all for show of course, because Jimin would manipulate time and space if Minjeong asked, even if it was three in the morning.
Slipping out from under the covers, Jimin immediately experiences a full body shiver as the chilled air hits her. Their accommodation isn’t as rustic as some of the other cabins they’d passed on their way up here, but it wouldn’t surprise her if the storm was the reason for their current outage.
Entering the kitchen, Jimin takes note of the snow piled high against the windows, the glass practically frosted over due to the cold. She tests the faucet first, and is thankful when everything appears to be in working order.
That unfortunately is where the good news ends.
Slouching by the back door, Jimin confirms her own fears, staring blankly at the electronic thermostat that had definitely been working when they first arrived, now showing nothing on the tiny LCD.
——
“ Your business is important to us. Please, stay on the line and a representative will be with you shortly—”
“You’re still down here?”
Jimin shoots Minjeong a wry smile from where she sits at the kitchen table, bundled underneath a spare throw. “I’ve been on hold for over two hours. I imagine the whole town is calling in right now.”
Minjeong moves to stand behind Jimin, careful not to trip over her own blanket that dragged across the floor. Unceremoniously, she smooths her hands down the sides of Jimin’s neck, making the latter flinch from the shock, nearly dropping the receiver from where it sat between her ear and shoulder.
“Your hands are like ice cubes.” While Jimin whines, the older woman doesn’t pull away, instead she takes Minjeong’s near frozen hands into her own and gently blows on them until they return to a normal temperature.
In moments like these, Minjeong can admit she's a little spoiled. It’s just too easy to let herself be coddled by Jimin though, especially when Jimin seems all too happy to do things for her. “Thank you for looking into it.”
Jimin smiles at the praise, leaning back into Minjeong’s chest. “Of course, can’t have my precious wife worrying about things like these on our anniversary, can I?”
Minjeong laughs at that, because it isn’t really their anniversary. Jimin just had the luck of winning her department’s seasonal raffle, which happened to be a timeshare for January.
They only had two weeks left to claim it, so they’d both taken off and drove for four hours with the understanding that this trip would count for their anniversary.
“It’s not shaping up to be very good so far unfortunately.” Jimin pouts, tuning back into the pre-recorded sound byte that told her she was still the twenty-eighth caller in line.
“Well, maybe this is a sign.” Minjeong says, clearly not bothered by the turn of events.
“A sign?”
“Yeah,” Minjeong continues, trying to act nonchalant, “it doesn’t look like things are going to be fixed anytime soon. Maybe we should…”
Jimin hangs up the phone when she realizes where the conversation was about to go. “Maybe we should?”
“Maybeweshouldgohome?” Minjeong rushes out, pointedly looking away from Jimin’s stare.
“Baby, we just got here.” Jimin starts, testing the waters.
“I know.” Minjeong frowns then, realizing how ridiculous it sounded. “I just–”
This time, it’s Jimin who stands and pulls Minjeong into a backhug, opening her arms wide enough so her blanket encompasses them both. “Is this because of the kids?”
Minjeong shrugs, leaning back into the warmth. “I know it’s only been a day, but this is the first time we’ve really left them alone.”
“Well, Sungmin is home this week. And Yizhuo is there.”
“You know what I mean.”
Jimin chuckles as Minjeong pinches her side in retaliation. “It’s okay, I miss them too.”
“Yeah?” Minjeong tilts her head back to look at Jimin. “You don’t mind?”
Jimin shakes her head, leaning down just enough to slot their lips together, satisfied when Minjeong melts into the kiss. It's brief, but enough to leave Jimin wanting for more as soon as they part. “I don’t care where we are, as long as we get to spend time together.”
“You’re gross.” Minjeong practically gags at her cheesy words, but otherwise doesn’t give her wife a prolonged scolding.
“Oh yeah, the grossest.” Jimin smiles widely, jerking suddenly as she attacks Minjeong with a barrage of kisses.
“Yah!” Minjeong squirms in Jimin’s vicelock, angling her body awkwardly in an attempt to escape. “Let me go!”
——
“We’re home!” Jimin announces loudly as soon as they get in the door, Minjeong trailing right behind her.
“Jimin? Minjeong?” Yiizhuo is the first to greet them, doing a double take as she rounds the corner, eyes wide as if she’s seen a ghost. “Why are you two here?”
“Geez, don’t act so happy to see us.” Jimin shakes her head, pushing their luggage into the laundry room to sort through later.
“There were some issues with the house, so we just decided to come back.” Minjeong explains, glancing around the foyer. “Where is everyone?”
“Wait,” Yizhuo suspiciously eyes both of them, “this isn’t because you guys don’t trust me with the girls, is it?”
“No, of course not.” Jimin laughs, sharing a knowing look with Minjeong. “You take the girls out all the time.”
“Yeah,” Minjeong tacks on, “besides, Sungmin is home too.”
Yizhuo hums, flashing a sarcastic smile. “That definitely makes me feel better, thanks.”
“Oh, you guys are home.”
“Eomma!”
“There they are.” Jimin catches Haewon before she crashes into her legs, hoisting her up as the girl erupts into a fit of giggles.
“You guys going out somewhere?” Minjeong asks, watching Sungmin lace up his boots.
“Auntie Yizhuo is taking us to the movies!” Haewon bounces excitedly as Jimin struggles to help the girl into her coat.
Yunjeong comes down the stairs then, momentarily taken aback.“You guys are back so soon?”
Minjeong blinks, slowly feeling like she and Jimin were the ones intruding. “Well, the storm was pretty bad, so we had to come back.” Minjeong beckons the girl forward, smoothing down some unruly fringe and planting a chaste kiss on her forehead. “I’m assuming you guys had a fun sleepover with Aunt Yizhuo?”
“Eh, it was okay.” Yunjeong shrugs, trying to play it off, but can’t help cracking a smile when Yizhuo bumps the younger girl's hip with her own.
“What she means to say is, I’m the best Auntie in the world. Naturally, we had a blast.” Yizhuo flicks her hair back and holds her head high. “And we’re going to continue having a blast, by ourselves.”
Yizhuo ushers Yunjeong to join Sungmin and Haewon in gearing up for their outing, after which she turns to give Minjeong a pointed look. “And while we’re gone, you two better be doing some couple-y stuff, understood?”
“Alright, I get it...” Minjeong dodges Yizhuo’s gaze.
“And you,” Yizhuo turns her attention to Jimin who was watching the whole interaction, trying not to burst out laughing, “make sure this one relaxes.”
“Of course.” Jimin chuckles, wrapping an arm around a disgruntled Minjeong.
“Aunt Yizhuo, we’re going to be late.” Sungmin calls, gesturing to the clock.
“Okay, well you guys have fun.” Minjeong just barely restrains herself from offering to drive them to the theater.
Without any further fanfare, the kids pile out the door, immediately followed by Yizhuo, who pauses to give the couple one last warning. “We’ll be back in four hours, tops. You know what you need to do in the meantime.”
Jimin snorts, unable to take the younger woman seriously. Even though it sounds like a threat—and, well, maybe it was a threat—they both know Yizhuo means well. “Thanks for watching them for us, Yizhuo. We really appreciate it.”
Yizhuo brushes off the praise, sighing as though Jimin had just stated the most obvious of facts. “I know, I’m the best. You don’t have to remind me.”
And with that, Minjeong and Jimin are left alone once again.
“Well,” Jimin hums, shifting her attention to where Minjeong was rolling her eyes at the Yizhuo’s dramatics, “guess we have our orders.”
“I’ll get us some glasses.”
——
“Hi Mrs. Park, how are you feeling tonight?” Jimin asks, pulling on a pair of boot covers she keeps in her bag just for calls like these, gesturing for Jisung to do the same.
“Oh Jimin! Sorry to keep dragging you out here. You know how my son gets, always worried for me.”
“It’s fine.” Jimin smiles, as if it wasn’t the third time they’d been called this month. “You know the drill, I’m going to take some vitals.”
After going through all the routine tests, Jimin starts preparing an IV with some saline. “Everything looks pretty normal. You’re just a little dehydrated.”
“That’s a relief.” Mrs. Park leans back into her armchair as Jisung takes out a cotton swab and some rubbing alcohol.
“Your blood pressure is a little high though,” Jimin continues, filling out some forms on her tablet, “you have been taking your medication everyday right?”
“Ah, well, about that…” Mrs. Park chuckles, flinching as Jisung misses her vein on the first attempt.
“Mrs. Park,” Jimin begins, “I know it’s not fun, but you need to take your medicine regularly.”
“Yes, of course.” Mrs. Park nods, but Jimin knows it’s a losing battle. Sometimes the older the patient, the more childlike they became. Regardless, once Mrs. Park is settled and Jimin takes her vitals again for good measure, she sends them off with a bag of sweet potatoes and the promise that she would do her best to remember to take her medicine.
Back in the truck, Jimin shakes her head at her partner. “Don’t think I didn’t see your slip up. Seem’s you still need more practice with Haechan.”
Jisung groans, embarrassed for being called out. “I’m getting better though…”
“You’re average is three sticks per patient,” Jimin has to laugh at her junior’s protests, “not only is it uncomfortable for them, it also increases the chance for bruising. I’ll tell Haechan to set aside some time for a training session.”
“Yes ma’am.” Jisung sinks back into his seat dejectedly.
——
“What’s this?” Minjeong asks, peeking into the plastic bag that Jimin had just set onto the counter upon her arrival home.
“Sweet potatoes from Mrs. Park.”
“Everything alright with her?” Minjeong begins placing the potatoes into a basket for cleaning.
“The usual.” Jimin replies. “She’ll be fine as long as she follows her doctor's instructions, though she does make it easier said than done.”
Minjeong laughs, knowing how feisty the older woman could be from the few times she’d met her around town. “You know she can be stubborn, alway insisting that she’s fine on her own.”
Jimin hums in agreement. “How about you? Work alright?”
“Yeah, but I forgot Yunjeong’s school was going to start having PTA meetings for the new term.” Minjeong goes to her bag and pulls out a brightly colored form. “Are you able to go to the first meeting next week?”
“Wait, me?” Jimin takes the form, already conveniently filled out with her personal information. “You want me to do it?”
“I’m a teacher, it'd be a conflict of interest.” Minjeong reasons.
Which, isn’t a total lie.
Technically, it would be awkward for her to be a part of Yunjeong’s PTA group, because she was employed by the school district.
A conflict of interest, yes, absolutely.
(Her having done it the last two years notwithstanding.)
It definitely wasn’t at all correlated to the fact that there were certain parents in the association that got on her nerves so badly she’d rather pull out all her fingernails with pliers than deal with them.
And no, Minjeong doesn’t think she’s being dramatic in the slightest.
“You’ll be fine,” Minjeong says in a placating manner, “just don’t smile and hopefully everyone will leave you alone.”
“I thought you said my resting bitch face wasn’t that bad?” Jimin scoffs, but still takes out her phone to check her schedule.
“You’ll do it because you love me. And you love Yun.” Minjeong replies cheekily, running a hand through Jimin’s hair, still damp from her recent shower.
“Using my affection for you guys against me,” Jimin plays it up, “shame on you.”
Now, don’t get her wrong, Jimin loved their house and thought their neighborhood was a great place for the kids. But if there was one thing that Jimin missed about living directly in the city, it was the overall anonymity.
Here, even though it felt just as crowded, it seemed like everyone knew everything about you. People talk, and it made Jimin reluctant to be too directly involved with Haewon’s or Yunjeong’s lives at school. It wasn’t shame, per say, but she’d rather die than be the reason for the girls having to go through any sort of discrimination.
Minjeong notices her wife’s silence, and gently takes hold of Jimin’s hand that was nervously drumming against the table. “Hey, if you don’t want to, I can do it instead.”
Jimin shakes her head, determined. “Nah, it’s alright. It’ll be fine.”
And it would be, Jimin would make sure of it.
As long as she didn’t stick out or get in anyone’s way, things should be easy, right?
——
Minjeong could understand some people’s reluctance to approach someone like Jimin.
Really, she could.
Truth be told, at first glance the older woman was pretty intimidating. Unless you were a friend, Jimin was surprisingly reserved, sporting an aloof expression most of the time. Still, that shouldn’t give people a pass to judge Jimin harshly, especially when underneath it all Jimin was about as scary as a teddy bear.
She figures that’s why Aeri had been calling and texting her nonstop since their falling out at the restaurant.
While it wasn’t like her to give anyone the cold shoulder or the silent treatment, Minjeong just couldn’t seem to get the bad taste out of her mouth, remembering the most recent voicemail Aeri had left for her.
(“Honestly, I don’t think I said anything that bad. I was only stating facts.”)
Just thinking about it leaves Minjeong bristling. If Aeri thought that was an apology she had her work cut out for her.
Because really, it just wasn’t fair. At all.
“Jeongie?” Jimin reaches out, smoothing her thumb across her girlfriend’s forehead in an attempt to dispel the deep frown that had overtaken her usually soft features. “You okay?”
“It’s not fair.” Minjeong continued muttering under her breath, as if in a trance.
It’s Jimin’s turn to frown now, unsure how to comfort the younger. It had been months since Minjeong first tried to introduce her to Aeri, and subsequently months since the two friends had spoken to one another.
Even though she’d assured Minjeong that it was fine, because Aeri was just looking out for her, Minjeong could be quite stubborn when she wanted to.
“Don’t you think it’s been long enough?” Jimin tries again, rubbing soothing circles against the small of Minjeong’s back. “I know she’s been trying to get in touch with you.”
“Hm.” Minjeong turns her nose up at the suggestion. “As she should, she needs to understand that she overstepped.”
Jimin can’t help but to chuckle as Minjeong’s pout deepens, blowing her cheeks out and furrowing her brows in a way that always makes Jimin melt a little. “Well if we still plan on accepting your parent’s invitation for next week, you may have no choice.”
Minjeong shoots her girlfriend a look, clearly not ready to back down. “Don’t underestimate me, Yu Jimin.”
——
Despite how long Jimin had known Minjeong, she always forgot just how rich the younger one was, or rather, how rich her family was.
She’s reminded once more of this reality when their Uber pulls up and is instructed to wait at the end of possibly the longest driveway she’s ever seen, a set of wrought iron gates slowly opening before them.
Minjeong of course does her best to quell her nerves, assuring her the whole ride over that her parents would love her. But even with those words, Jimin felt as if she was prey voluntarily entering a predator's den.
Another black car pulls up next to them as soon as they park in the turnaround and Aeri steps out giving them a withering look.
“Don’t pay any attention to her.” Minjeong sniffs, turning away from the window. “Let’s take our time and get settled into our room first.”
Jimin heads straight to the trunk to get their bags, but is stopped by an older gentleman dressed in a crisp suit and tie.
“Miss Yu?”
“U-uh, yes?” Jimin blinks, unsure exactly who this man was.
“Jimin, this is Mr. Lee,” Minjeong comes around the car, hooking her arm through Jimin’s own, “he’s been with our family since I can remember.”
“A pleasure to meet one of Miss Kim’s esteemed guests.” Mr. Lee bows his head towards the couple.
“Mr. Lee, this is actually my girlfriend, Jimin.”
Mr. Lee smiles then, reaching out to ruffle Minjeong’s hair. “My, you’re that old already?”
Minjeong gently shrugs off the man’s hand, embarrassment clear on her face. “Mr. Lee, please.”
Mr. Lee lets out a hearty chuckle, clearly very close to the youngest Kim. “Apologies Miss,” Mr. Lee turns back to Jimin and gestures to the trunk, “If that is the case, then it’s an even greater pleasure to meet you Miss Yu. Please, see yourselves inside and allow us to take care of your bags.”
Minjeog is quick to pull her inside before Jimin can protest, “I know it can be a little overwhelming if you’re not used to it.”
Jimin doesn’t respond, she can’t really, too distracted by anything and everything they pass. The Kim estate was surrounded by lush gardens, and was furnished with the most decadent of wares—they even had floor to ceiling portraits depicting each family member hung throughout its corridors.
“So, are you sure you guys aren’t like, royalty or something?” Jimin asks once they finally make it to the east wing where their guest suite was.
“Of course not.” Minjeong laughs at such a ridiculous assumption.
“Might as well be.” Jimin mumbles to herself.
Minjeong watched her girlfriend buzz around their room with childlike wonder, the latter very engrossed with studying the intricate gilding that adorned the high canopy over their bed.
Growing up around these things had desensitized Minjeong to a degree, however, just as this was a first for Jimin, it was also a first for her.
In all her years, Minjeong had never brought someone back to her family's estate, despite the persistent prodding from her family. And while she was just as nervous as Jimin, she was equally excited.
——
This technically wasn’t the first time Jimin had met Minjeong’s parents.
In fact, they had spoken several times already whenever Minjeong would zoom with them on free weekends.
That was before they started dating though.
Sitting across from them at dinner now made Jimin break out into a cold sweat. Thankfully, everyone is polite enough, even feigning interest in her and Minjeong’s day to day.
“So, Jimin, how are things at work?” Minjeong’s dad asks, slicing into his steak with vigor.
Jimin takes a moment to collect herself before answering. “Uh, yes. They're good. Our department is going through some administrative change, but our operations have remained normal.”
“Minjeong mentioned you’re responsible for training some of the new recruits?” Minjeong’s older sister asks this time.
“Yeah, just basic skills. All senior fire staff are assigned partners after the juniors graduate from the academy.”
“Ah,” Mr. Kim gleefully raises his glass, “that reminds me of my days in the army. Newbies are always so much fun, full of wonder and potential, no?”
The conversation moves on as Mr. Kim regales some of his old war stories, and Jimin is glad for the redirect.
Minjeong leans over from her own seat, gently squeezing Jimin’s thigh. “See, not so bad right?”
“Your dad is still terrifying, sorry.” Jimin whispers back, making Minjeong giggle.
It takes two more hours, but somehow she manages to survive dinner.
Jimin’s read of the situation was that the Kims truly did care for Minjeong’s happiness, even if it didn't align with their initial vision for their youngest. For that, Jimin is glad because she would hate to cause a rift between Minjeong and her family.
Unfortunately, the events of the evening didn’t appear to be over just yet.
And as if reading her own thoughts, Jimin notices Aeri approaching her, footsteps heavy and pace startlingly fast.
“Uh,” Jimin looks around, but hesitates to pull Minjeong away from where she was in deep conversation with her sister.
“Yu.”
To her credit, Jimin doesn’t flinch. She simply plasters on her biggest, most polite smile, and turns to face the other woman. “Aeri! Good to see you, it’s been a while, huh.”
Aeri doesn’t bother with small talk. “Everyone appears occupied, why don’t you and I get a drink downstairs.”
So this was it huh, this was how she was going to die.
Not in prison, not from a raging fire, but at the hands of a very pissed off Japanese woman.
“Yeah, sounds great.” Jimin accepts her fate, following Aeri who’d already walked off, leaving her to follow along like a whipped dog.
Fast forward eight minutes later and they’re standing five feet apart in the downstairs bar, a glass of whiskey for Jimin and a glass of white wine for Aeri.
“I won’t beat around the bush, I don’t like you for Minjeong.”
“Yes, I know.”
“Then I shouldn’t have to explain why, right?”
Jimin opens her mouth to defend herself, but doesn’t even know where to begin, or if what she has to say would even matter. She knows Aeri is just looking out for Minjeong, and she respects her for that.
“I see your kind pass through the DA’s office everyday.” Aeri sneers. “So I understand better than most how our system rarely turns out well reformed citizens. For whatever reason though, Minjeong seems to believe in you.”
“I didn’t understand it either.” Jimin stared down into her drink, body warming from the alcohol. “Still don’t, most days. But it’s Minjeong’s choice, and you know how stubborn she can be.”
Aeri gives her a surprised look, “You’re not backing down?”
“You care a lot for Minjeong, that’s something you and I have in common.” Jimin finally turns, back straight and head held high, returning Aeri’s stare with her own. “If you’re worried about me hurting Minjeong, or damaging the Kim family name, you don’t have to. I could never do that to Minjeong. I can promise you that much. But please don’t let this drive a wedge between you and Minjeong, I know she’s the one ignoring you right now, but she misses you.”
Aeri is silent after that, lost in thought as she finishes off her own drink. Jimin takes that as a sign of their conversation being over, and begins making her way back upstairs.
“Yu.”
Jimin pauses at the second landing. “Yeah?”
“Tell Minjeong I’ll speak with her tomorrow.”
And for the first time that evening, Jimin genuinely smiles. “Thank you, Aeri.”
——
Jimin knows she was the one who pushed for this, but with every passing moment she’s realizing why her wife seemed so keen to pass this task onto her.
“Again, we will need at least five parent volunteers for the Spring fundraiser, any early takers?” The cheerful woman at the front of the room looks around, jotting down names as she goes. “No one else? We still need two more people.”
When no one moves, the woman continues. “Alright, that should be good enough for now. I’ll send a link to the spreadsheet for this event in our follow-up email. Perhaps after checking your schedules we’ll be able to fill those positions. Now, moving onto the next item on our agenda—”
Jimin glances at the clock for the nth-time, shifting uncomfortably in the undersized plastic chairs of the classroom. A woman next to her must notice her restlessness, and somehow takes that as a sign to engage her in conversation.
“Horrible, right?” The woman smiles at her and leans in uncomfortably close. “I alway tell Jieun we should use the school’s actual conference room but she never listens to me.”
Jimin smiles back awkwardly, not wanting to seem rude and replies, “Oh. I see.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you here before, are you new to the school?”
“My wife usually attends,” Jimin winces at how that comes out, “we uh, we’re taking turns this term. I think.”
“Oh!” The woman perks up at that. “You must be Yunjeong’s—other—parent.”
Jimin tilts her head at the woman’s wording, unsure if she should be offended yet or not.
“Minjeong doesn’t come by the middle school often, but she has mentioned you a few times.” The woman powers on, completely oblivious to her own tone. “And that Yunjeong, well, we’ve all heard what happened to her mother and feel so sorry for her. God bless you and Minjeong for stepping up.”
Speechless, that’s how Jimin feels at the moment.
It was as if she had entered some alternate dimension where apparently it was okay to just say these kinds of things to other people. And to add insult to injury, another woman overhears and decides it’s to join in.
“You must be Jimin, My husband told me about you.” The second woman gives her a scathing look. “I didn’t think the school board would allow you this close to the school, let alone inside it—”
“That’s enough.” Jimin finally snaps. “I hardly think this is an appropriate conversation to be having.”
Both women are stunned into silence by her retort, but Jimin does her best to ignore them. Physically maneuvering her chair to face directly away from both of them.
She knows she probably should have just kept her mouth shut, but Jimin doesn’t dwell on it for too long. As soon as the meeting concludes, she’s out of the classroom and looking for Yunjeong who was waiting for her to take them home.
“There you are,” Jimin finds her daughter by the gym, “ready to get out of here?”
“Can I stop by my locker first? I forgot one of my binders.”
“Yeah, of course.” Jimin takes Yunjeong’s backpack from her, slinging it over her own shoulder before gesturing for the girl to lead the way.
They almost make it without running into anyone, but it’s just Jimin’s luck to attract unwanted attention.
“Yunjeong, heading home already?”
They both turn, and Jimin’s unable to conceal her scowl as the rude woman from the meeting approaches them.
Yunjeong gives the woman a polite bow, “Yes Mrs. Baek.”
“Good, that’s good.” The woman, Mrs. Baek, apparently, gives Yunjeong a once over. “You know if you ever need anything you can feel free to ask the school for help, right?”
Yunjeong nods, clearly uncomfortable with the scrutiny, shuffling imperceptibly closer to Jimin. “Yes Mrs. Baek.”
“And if you ever feel unsafe—”
Jimin has heard enough and quickly shuts the woman down. “Yunjeong, why don’t you go outside and wait for me. Mrs. Baek and I are going to have a quick chat.”
Yunjeong turns to Jimin, “Eomma?”
“It’s alright.” Jimin assures her, giving her a gentle pat on the shoulder. “Just some PTA stuff. That’s all.”
“Okay…” Yunjeong leaves then, never one to forget her manners though, she makes sure to politely say goodbye to Mrs. Baek.
Jimin watches and waits until Yunjeong is out the front doors before turning back to the other woman. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t approach my daughter when she’s at school.”
Mrs. Baek scoffs. “I’m just doing what any reasonable parent would. I’m not sure what’s going through Minjeong’s mind, because I’ve always known her as a rather level headed person, but—”
“Since you claim to know so much about me.” Jimin steps forward, startling the other woman so badly she nearly topples over a trashcan. With Mrs. Baek cornered, Jimin leans in close, reversing their roles from earlier in the meeting. “You should know what I’m capable of. Don’t think I’m against doing it again, I’m not afraid to go back.”
Jimin pulls away, smirking as Mrs. Baek stutters out, “A-are you threatening me?”
“No, of course not.” Jimin shrugs. “I’m just saying, it may be in your best interest to leave my wife and daughter alone. Understand?”
Mrs. Baek is left shaking in anger, clearly unused to not getting her way. “I cannot believe—”
”Have a nice night, Mrs. Baek.”
Jimin doesn’t stick around to hear another word out of Mrs. Baek’s mouth, openly ignoring the other woman and heading straight for the parking lot.
When Yunjeong asks her about it on the way home, Jimin just makes up some story about the fundraiser, and thankfully, the girl loses interest quickly.
Minjeong however, well, Jimin thinks her wife might be another story.
——
“Jimin.”
The eldest freezes on the spot, only halfway through the dishes from that evening.
Upon their arrival home, Jimin had immediately sensed Minjeong’s mood. Dinner was uneventful and even their nightly routine of helping the girls with their schoolwork went smoothly as usual. She should have known not to be too optimistic though, because as soon as Haewon and Yunjeong were sent off to bed for the night, Minjeong confronted her.
Now, as she faced her eerily calm wife, Jimin thinks maybe she should have stopped by the grocery store before bringing Yunjeong home.
Although, she doubts even the most expensive set of chocolates could save her from her wife’s wrath now.
“Care to tell me why I’m getting emails from Mrs. Baek saying you threatened her?”
Though Minjeong is smiling when she says this, Jimin knows better. “Uh, because…I love you?”
Minjeong’s left eye twitches, on her last nerve. “Try again.”
“I’m sorry!” Jimin immediately folds. Truly, she isn’t proud of what she did but what else was she to do? “But, in my defense, that woman was being really rude.”
“Jimin, people are always going to talk, that doesn’t mean you can just threaten them.” Minjeong tries to reason.
“It’s not like I was actually being serious,” Jimin says, her heart beginning to race, “you know that, right?”
Jimin reaches out to Minjeong because she doesn’t know what else to do or say at this point, but is completely rejected when the shorter woman shrugs her off. “That’s not the point Jimin. I thought it would be okay for you to go because you usually don’t pay attention to those people.”
“And I don’t.” Jimin says firmly. “I don’t care what those people think of me, but she–that woman just…” Jimin bites her own tongue because while she was usually the one that had thicker skin, this time was different. It wasn’t just about her, it had involved her family. And it isn’t an excuse by any means, but to Jimin her actions felt justified.
“What, Jimin. She what?” Minjeong presses, exhaustion clear on her face. “You have to tell me, I can’t just read your mind.”
“I–I can’t.” Jimin forces herself to look away from Minjeong’s intense stare. She wants to tell her wife, knows that she should tell her, but she just can’t bring herself to do it. “What does it even matter now, it’s already done.”
“Really, Jimin?” Minjeong visibly deflates as Jimin shuts her out.
“I’m sorry.”
Minjeong just shakes her head, brushing past her to leave the room.
“Are you angry with me?” Jimin asks, dread pooling in her gut.
“I’m not.” Minjeong sighs, back turned towards her, not even sparing Jimin a glance. “Just…I need some space right now.”
Jimin thinks that a slap to the face would hurt less than those words, her heart lurching at the disappointment in Minjeong’s tone.
——
“Eomma?”
Jimin glances past the glow of the tv where she was mindlessly watching Jeopardy reruns. There stood Haewon in her pajamas, her favorite stuffed animal held firmly in her grasp. “Baby? What are you doing there?” Jimin rubs at her own eyes and gestures for the girl to join her on the couch.
Haewon pads her way over and Jimin helps her up onto the plush cushions that nearly swallow her tiny frame. “Eomma, why are you out here?”
“Just watching some TV.” Jimin explains, offering her daughter the other half of her blanket. “I think the better question is why are you awake?”
Haewon shrugs, immediately burrowing into the thick comforter. “Can we watch cartoons?”
Jimin’s first instinct is to say no, but she knows the little girl won’t go back to bed so easily. Besides, it wasn’t like she was going to sleep herself any time soon. “Alright, just for an episode or two and then it’s back to bed, okay?”
“Thank you Eomma!” Haewon happily settles in, leaning against Jimin’s side as she presses play on a random episode.
Haewon becomes engrossed immediately, and even Jimin feels her mood lift a little as she watches her daughter mumble along to the opening theme song.
“Are you and Minjeong Eomma fighting?” Haewon asks suddenly.
Jimin playfully pinches her daughter’s cheek before asking, “Where did you hear that?”
“Yunjeong said you and Eomma were fighting, and that’s why you’re in the doghouse tonight.”
Aish, that girl.
Jimin shakes her head and makes a mental note to ask where the older girl heard such a phrase. “No sweetie, we weren’t fighting. We—well, I—made a mistake, and that made Minjeong Eomma sad. She just needs some space tonight, that’s all.”
“Oh,” Haewon bobs hear head, thoughtfully processing her explanation, “does that mean you have to apologize?”
“Yeah, it does.”
“Eomma?”
“Yes Wonnie.”
“Can you play another episode?”
——
After far more than just an episode or two, Haewon finally falls asleep.
Jimin triple checks that the girl really is asleep before scooping her up and taking her back to her own bedroom. Haewon barely flinches as Jimin tucks her in, only stirring when she can’t seem to find Mr. Penguin in her sleep, but settles down as soon as Jimin coaxes the plushie into her arms.
Even if it is nearly two a.m., Jimin still feels wide awake, adrenaline lingering in her system from her and Minjeong’s not-fight.
So she slowly makes her way back downstairs, not expecting to find another surprise guest waiting for her. Jimin gingerly sits next to Minjeong on the couch, clearing her throat before speaking. “Sorry, were we too loud?”
“No, I just can’t sleep.”
Jimin feels even guiltier now. “Should I make you some tea?”
“No.” Minjeong shakes her head, maneuvering her body so she can lie down. “I just—I need to sleep for work tomorrow.”
“Okay.” Jimin understands, taking Minjeong’s actions as a temporary truce. Grasping the blanket, Jimin makes sure to cover Minjeong first before settling down herself, spooning the younger one against her chest until they’re both comfortable. “Minjeong?” Jimin whispers cautiously.
“Mm.”
“I’m sorry.”
It takes a moment, but eventually Minjeong acknowledges her. “I know you are.”
“And you’re right,” Jimin continues, “gossip about myself usually doesn’t bother me, but they were talking about you too. And Yunjeong.”
“What did they say about Yunjeong?” Minjeong shifts to glance back up at Jimin now.
“Not much,” Jimin assures her, “it was more about them insinuating that because of me, we aren’t fit to be her parents.”
“Jimin,” Minjeong tries to turn fully to face her wife but is stopped by the latter’s firm grip, “is that what Mrs. Baek said to you?”
“I mean, not verbatim. It was still my fault for snapping anyway.” Jimin sighs, hiding her face in Minjeong’s short locks. “It felt like she was threatening to take Yunjeong and even Haewon away from us, and I couldn’t handle that.”
Minjeong finally wiggles her body around, her hands coming up to gently cradle Jimin’s face. “Baby, you know I would never let that happen.”
“I know.” Jimin whispers back, closing her eyes as she leans heavily into Minjeong’s touch. “She just really got to me.”
It's Minjeong’s turn to feel guilty now. She really hadn’t thought anyone would confront Jimin like that, maybe needling her into some extra volunteer hours sure, but definitely not harassing her on such a level. “I’ll have a talk with the school tomorrow.”
“No,” Jimin opens her eyes then, “it’s okay. I’ll apologize to Mrs. Baek myself. I don’t want Yunjeong to be affected by this, and I have no doubt that if we make a formal complaint she’d find a way to mess with her.”
Minjeong wants to protest, but deep down she knows Jimin is right. “Fine, but I wanna be there when you do.”
“Sure.” Jimin gets out through a yawn, tiredness finally catching up to her.
“Hey,” Minjeong prods at Jimin’s chest before she dozes off completely, “come on. Let’s go to bed.”
Jimin tightens her hold around Minjeong’s waist and whines, “Nooo, don’t leave me.”
“Dummy, I said let’s.”
——
“And that’s what a normal day looks like for me.” Aeri looks back from the projector, expecting to see some hands up for questions, only to find a sea of blank-faced students. “No questions?”
When she’s met with silence, Minjeong decides it’s probably time to wrap things up. “If any of you decide later that you do have questions for Miss Uchinaga, make sure to take down her contact information from the slide. Let’s give her a hand for the great presentation.”
After the class gives her a lackluster thanks, the room empties out leaving Minjeong and Aeri alone. “Thanks for coming today, I really appreciate it.”
Aeri waves her off, packing away her laptop and notes. “It’s no problem. Honestly, I don’t know how you do it everyday though.”
Minjeong laughs. “They enjoyed it, I could tell. Career week is just a lot for them to take in, that’s all.”
Aeri snorts at her friend's optimism. “Could have fooled me. I bet they’d be ten times more engaged if someone like Jimin came in and spoke.”
“What, are you saying your job is boring, Miss Prosecutor?” Minjeong teases the older woman as they make their way to the teacher’s lounge.
“I’m saying–” Aeri stops herself upon realizing what Minjeong was trying to do. “Wow, you almost had me there.”
“Sorry, I forgot it might kill you if you accidentally compliment my wife.” Minjeong doesn’t understand why Aeri still pretends to hate Jimin when they were actually pretty compatible as friends.
“You’re right, it would kill me. Just the thought of it makes me feel ill.”
Minjeong rubs her temple, feeling like she was dealing with just another one of her students. Regardless, she’d promised to treat the lawyer for doing her a favor, and she intends to follow through.
Minjeong hadn’t asked in advance where they would go, giving Aeri free reign to choose (and subesquenty free reign over her wallet). She figured the latter would pick something fancy like a steakhouse or an upscale martini bar, but is left guessing until they pull up to their local diner.
“Wait, you want to eat here?” Minjeong has to do a double take, because while she was always up for some greasy takeout, Aeri usually is the type to scold her for not watching her cholesterol.
“What? I’ve eaten here before you know.” Aeri ignores Minjeong’s flabbergasted expression. “Yizhuo said it was good, and that she likes bringing Yunjeong and Haewon here. I figured if we ate here you could at least take the girls back some dinner.”
“I didn’t realize you and Yizhuo were so casual already.” Minjeong smirks when Aeri’s face suddenly heats up.
“Shut up, it’s not like that.”
“Yet, you mean.” Minjeong practically sings as she skips into the restaurant, effortlessly dodging all of Aeri’s attempts to smack her.
——
“Hello?” Minjeong picks up, a little disoriented at first due to the late hour.
“Eomma?”
Minjeong sits up then, suddenly feeling wide awake. “Sungmin, is everything okay?”
“Yeah, sorry, I tried calling Jimin Eomma but she didn’t pick up.”
“She’s working late tonight, if she didn’t pick up she must be out on a call.” Minjeong explains, throwing the blankets off and moving to get dressed. “Did you need something, what’s up?”
“No, I just wanted to see how you guys were.”
“Oh,” Minjeong lets out a sigh of relief, “well you know, Yunjeong and Haewon have been busy with school. I see they’re still spamming your phone even though I tell them not to.”
“I don’t mind,” Sungmin laughs, “the memes are funny. Most of the time...”
Ah.
Minjeong thinks she gets it now, because she feels it too. Even though they talk nearly every day over the phone, it doesn’t quite hold up to seeing each other in person. “They ask about when you’re coming home a lot, I have to remind them that you’re busy with school yourself, and with work.”
“Sorry I couldn’t make their recital.”
“It’s alright, Jimin taped the whole thing. I’ll remind her to make a copy to send to you.”
“I’d like that, thanks.”
“You’re working tonight, right?” Minjeong asks, already shooting off a message and hoping Yizhuo was still awake.
——
Minjeong barely catches the last train of the night. She’s thankful that Sungmin’s university is less than an hour away, and even more thankful that it’s right across from a major station stop.
It doesn’t take long then before she finds herself in front of a brightly lit convenience store, just in time to watch Sungmin clock out, turning over his cap and vest to one of his co-workers.
Minjeong laughs at his dumbfounded expression when he bumps into her on his way out.
“E-eomma? What are you doing here?”
“I missed you of course!” Minjeong pulls him down for a hug and teases him for getting too tall. “How about we go get a bite to eat?”
“What about Yunjeong and Haewon?” Sungmin asks, dragging them out of the doorway and onto the sidewalk.
“You know your Aunt Yizhuo can’t say no to a good bottle of wine.”
“Ah…”
“Don’t worry so much.” Minjeong gently pats him on the back. “You’ve been taking care of yourself, right? Eating well? You have enough money?”
“I’m doing well Eomma.” Sungmin sighs. Even though he knows Minjeong means well, it still was a little embarrassing to be asked those types of questions out in the open with plenty of other students still milling about.
“What, am I embarrassing you?” Minjeong smirks, because she clearly knows the answer. “I’m sorry, it’s instinct.”
“It’s okay Eomma.” Sungmin hums, trying to lead them down the street. “If you’re hungry, there’s a barbecue restaurant a couple blocks away.”
“Ooh, now you’re talking.” Minjeong smiles at the mere thought of grilled meat and veggies. Even if she had already eaten dinner, who was she to refuse perfectly good barbecue? “Come on then, let’s go. I’ll even buy you whatever you want to drink.”
“Eomma are you sure that’s a good idea?” It’s Sungmin’s turn to tease the older woman, giving her a knowing look.
“Yah, do you want a free dinner or not.” Minjeong huffs. “I can hold my liquor, you can’t compare me to Jimin Eomma either because we both know she can drink like a fish.”
Sungmin has to agree, remembering how excited Jimin was to drink with him the first time. “I guess that’s true.”
“That’s right,” Minjeong huffs, “just because I get a little flushed after one drink doesn’t mean I’m a lightweight, it’s just genetics!”
“Mm.” Sungmin smiles and nods along, knowing how fired up Minjeong could get over even the smallest things. Glancing to the side, Sungmin notes that Minjeong looks tired, and feels bad for calling her out of the blue. “You know, you didn’t have to come.” Sungmin says, slowing his stride.
“But I wanted to.” Minjeong is quick to assure him. “I missed you. We all have.”
Sungmin nods, not trusting himself to say anything after that without his voice breaking.
He knows he isn’t the most expressive person. It was actually something he was rather self conscious about. A part of him thinks it may be the fear of not being able to convey his emotions properly, and so he simply chooses to not convey them at all.
In moments like these though, he hopes Minjeong can read between the lines.
——
“Well, well, well.” Jimin welcomes her back with a knowing smile. This was, after all, probably the first time Minjeong had come home later than her. “How the tables have turned.”
Minjeong doesn’t even react, too used to her wife’s antics. “You didn’t have to wait up.”
“You always do it for me.” Jimin finally moves to properly greet her wife, helping Minjeong out of her coat before stealing a kiss.
“Where’s Yizhuo?”
“Knocked out in the guest suite.”
“Mm.” Minjeong’s body felt heavy with sleep, the alcohol beginning to really hit her.
Jimin takes Minjeong with her as she shuffles around, turning the porch lights off and double checking the locks. “Your visit went well, I can tell.” Jimin chuckles, recognizing how Minjeong got when she was tipsy.
“Mm, we should take the girls to see him next weekend. They’d like that.”
“Sounds good to me.” Jimin gently coaxes a dazed Minjeong down the hallway towards their bedroom. “Now come on, I got a bath ready for you.”
Minjeong whines, dreading the thought of staying awake for even a moment longer. She didn’t know how Jimin could function so well when she slept so little most days. Rubbing her face against the surprisingly soft fabric of Jimin’s tacky Shin-chan robe, Minjeong could tell Jimin had already bathed from the familiar scent that clung to her. “Don’t wanna.”
Jimin practically coos at how adorable Minjeong was being. It wasn’t often that the youngest would let her guard down like this, ever the tsundere. Jimin was normally the clingier of the two, but even if she was more outwardly affectionate, that didn’t mean Minjeong loved her any less. “Sweetie you should wash up, you’ll be thankful later.”
”Yeah, yeah.” Minjeong grumbles, contradicting those words as her grip tightens on the taller woman’s waist.
Jimin allows them to linger a moment longer, distracting them both by peppering kisses across Minjeong’s face. “I love you.”
”Love you too.” Minjeong mumbles back, her words muffled against Jimin’s smiling lips.