“Uh-huh. He decided that if he just didn’t read book five, the series wouldn’t be over. I think he was in fourth grade. Once he makes up his mind, that’s it. He’s never budged on that.”
Eunjae pondered this for a bit. “Do you think he’s made up his mind about me already…?”
Jiyeon took her own moment to ponder. “I’m gonna say yes.”
“Is that good or bad?”
“You’re still here, aren’t you?”
“Ah. Fair point.”
Jiyeon unloaded the last of her shopping and started on the popcorn. Eunjae decided to go ahead and eat the candy bar while trying to remember the last time he’d even had one. In the event that he might acquire such an indulgence, one or multiple brothers could be counted on to insist that Eunjae split it with them.
Yesterday it was the biggest cupcake he’d ever seen, replete with rainbow sprinkles. That would’ve been divided into slices so small that he’d barely get a real taste. Eunjae had so many luxuries here.
“Hey, I’ve been meaning to tell you… thanks for hanging out with my parents,” Jiyeon said, nudging him with her elbow. “The only thing Mom and Dad love more than watching dramas together is forcing one of us to watch with them. Neither of us has much time to do it anymore, though, between Denny running the shop and me being at the salon most days. I thought I’d have more time with them once I moved back. So much for that.”
Once I moved back.From where? But Eunjae decided not to pry. “I should be thanking them. They took me in, no questions asked.”
“True,” she conceded. “It’s not every day you meet kind strangers who diagnose you with amnesia on the spot.”
“I think about that every day.”
“I bet you do.”
“I’ve missed watching dramas more than I thought I would,” Eunjae found himself admitting. “They’re all crazy in some way but Miss Vivi loved them. She had this tiny TV in the kitchen at our house in Brisbane and we’d watch while she made lunch or dinner. My brother, Jungwoo, he…”
Eunjae trailed off, realizing what he was doing just a beat too late. Jiyeon paused in the middle of shaking popcorn into a bowl. Slowly, she prompted, “You have a brother?”
“I have, uh, a lot of brothers.” He finished the candy bar without choking. “But what did you do today?”
The look on Jiyeon’s face hinted at a number of questions she was refraining from asking. “The longest cut and color of my life,” she replied. “That's why I'm so late tonight.” Her phone buzzed on the countertop. “Oh, it’s Arthur.”
“Man,” said Denny, barging into the kitchen. “You seriously roped Arthur Junior into this? How can he even stand to talk to you?”
“Arthur couldn’t hold a grudge if you super glued it to his hands. Here, Ryan. He said to give you his email address and he’ll help with whatever.”
Eunjae hurried to take a picture of the text from Arthur, which contained the email address and also a bunch of squares that were supposed to be emoji. Jiyeon’s phone had a very limited range in that regard.
He knew exactly what he wanted to ask. The sooner he sent the questions, the sooner he might have answers. “I’ll email him right now,” Eunjae told them.
“Why is everyone obsessed with Arthur Hong?” muttered Denny. “Except Yeonnie, I guess. Since she’s broken up with him — what? Two times?”
Jiyeon corrected this statement. “He broke up with me the second time around. You guys all love to forget that part.”
Eunjae accidentally minimized the email he was composing and sent it to drafts. It wasthatArthur Hong. Victim of the Arthur Hong Betrayal, capital letters. He knew he’d heard the name before.
There was a rustle as Jiyeon dumped more popcorn into a purple plastic bowl. It had Halloween bats printed all over it. “I like Arthur. He’s an amazing person and I’m probably supposed to love him, because people tell me that I should. Kinda like how I should love my job just because I’m good at it. I don’t think that’s any reason to stay with someone. Do you?” She was talking to Denny, but she glanced at Eunjae for just the barest flicker of a moment. It happened so quickly that he thought he must have imagined it.
“Hey, I didn’t say that. I just felt bad for the guy. He probably still needs space. Maybe getting a text from you made him want to light himself on fire, you know? The anguish, etcetera.”
“If it makes you feel better, he’s never in anguish for long. He’s Arthur.”
“Makes sense. He’s got a lot going for him. Stable financial situation, respectable job, peak physical fitness. In a contest to become my next brother-in-law, he’d definitely be a finalist. Kind of a big weirdo sometimes, but still. Really strong contender.”
Jiyeon searched an upper cabinet for more popcorn bowls. “Wow. A contest, huh.”
“It’s an exclusive contest. Most don’t even meet the requirements.”
