“I wouldn’t ask. I just would expect you to give it to me.”
“See? That’s why I didn’t show you. You’re not even my oldest son’s wife. Why should you get it?”
Julia tried to open the door a little farther to see what they were talking about. All she could make out was a small silk pouch. Interesting. Julia wondered what was inside.
“Anyways, I think it’s a great idea. I don’t know how Julia will feel about your methods, but in the end, I hope it all works. It would be so wonderful,” her mother said, clasping her hands at her chest.
That was Julia’s cue. She needed to get to the bottom of this. She needed to get to the bottom of a lot of things.
“What are you two up to in here?” she asked as she pushed the door open.
They both jumped a little where they sat.
“Julia, you nearly gave me a heart attack,” her grandmother said.
Julia narrowed her eyes. “Nice try, Grandma. But fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice—”
“What shame? Julia, what did you do?” her mother asked, eyes wide in panic.
“Nothing, Mom. It’s just a saying. A figure of speech to say that I won’t fall for Halmoni’s really shitty guilt trip again. I can’t believe you led me to believe the doctor gave you bad news. What did she really say, Grandma?”
“She said I had dancing breasts.”
“You have what?” Julia tried to make sense of what her grandma was saying.
“The doctor said because I have dancing breasts, it’s harder to determine what they’re seeing from the pictures. So she massaged my boob for a while, and apparently it was nothing to be concerned about.”
“Wait, do you meandensebreasts?”
“Dense breasts?”
“It means—oh, never mind. So she did the ultrasound, and everything was okay? Why did you lead me to believe that it might not be? Halmoni, you lied to me and then tricked me. How is that okay?”
Her grandmother waved her hand in the air. “It’s not that big of a deal, Julia. I was just trying to do what’s best for you.”
“Was scaring me about your health best for me? Was tricking me and losing my trust best for me? Were three epically bad dates best for me?”
“Who cares about the dates? That’s not what this was about,” her grandmother said, though she managed to look at least a little bit guilty for her treachery.
“What are you talking about?” Julia asked. Wasn’t this whole dying wish specifically for Julia to get set up on these dates and find love?
“It was about finding out what you want,” her grandmother said as if reading Julia’s thoughts.
“Were you in on this too?” Julia looked to her mother, pointing a finger.
Her mother shook her head. “No, no. I wanted you to marry the doctor.”
Julia groaned. Her mother was so predictable.
“But I’m not upset about how it’s turned out. The alternative is much better,” her mom said, exchanging a look with her grandmother. Her grandmother tried to sneak the small silk pouch they’d been looking at into her pocket.
“What is that?” Julia asked.
“Have you and Tae stopped arguing?” her grandmother asked, dropping a bomb, changing the subject.
Julia whipped her head up to meet her eyes. The mere mention of his name felt like a punch to the gut. Julia had to steady herself, letting out a deep breath. “How did you know about that? You know what? Don’t tell me. I don’t even want to know. But speaking of Tae, seriously Halmoni, you hired him to date me? How could you? I’m humiliated.”
“Julia, you’re not the easiest person to impress. You can be quite judgmental.” Julia’s jaw dropped open at her mother’s words. Her mom shrugged a shoulder. “Tae is a very patient man. And he’s the type of man who has the inner strength to be a good partner to a strong woman. But you might never have given him a chance. It was a good idea,” her mom said. “When Halmoni told me what she’d done, I was almost disappointed I didn’t come up with the idea myself.”
