This is My Love

Strings Attached

Their gazes broke off to look at the closed door. Who was on the other side?

Closing the fridge, Sehun walked to open it. Joomi beamed a smile at him. Immediate frustration spread through him almost like wildfire. He didn't want her here. He sighed.

"Since you were busy yesterday I thought I'd come today," she chirped and stepped in through the gap on his left. Halting when she saw his guests. Curious Namjoo and Moowon stared in return. Joomi's eyes demanded an answer when she turned to look at him.

Closing the door Sehun took a few steps past her. It couldn't be avoided now. Hiding his irritation he introduced, "This is Namjoo and her son Moowon. He's Gunta's friend at the daycare. This is Joomi."

"Ah..." Joomi nodded. "The daycare friend." Now looking at him inquiringly, "But what are they doing here?"

"I invited them, Joomi," Sehun flatly stated, reminding her whose home she had stepped into.

"All right, I was just wondering," Joomi shrugged but Sehun could tell it was more than that. She didn't like it that there was another woman in his house.

Pivoting she walked into his kitchen to set down the grocery bag she'd come with. Taking control, her way. Peering in Namjoo's direction, he saw her digesting the situation with the blink of her eyes. He regretted opening the door. He had cleaned up for this?

Asking Namjoo not him, "Why don't you stay? I was going to make dinner. It'd be nice if we could all eat together."

Namjoo mouthed, "Should I leave?" No, he immediately wanted to say, but felt eyes on him. Then turned to see Joomi watching him. Her gaze next traveled to look over her shoulder at Namjoo. Full of suspicion that they'd been talking somehow without including her.

"You'll stay, won't you?" Joomi pegged.

"I actually wasn't..." Namjoo began half-rising.

Joomi cut her off, "Stay. I'm a really good cook." Glancing at him purposefully, she added, "Sehun and Gunta always enjoy my food."

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Namjoo had no idea what was happening. A lot of things she didn't know about Gunta and his father, but then she had never really expected to know anything. Plan was to leave after calming Moowon down but he wouldn't leave her lap, and now Gunta decided he'd like to lean into her too.

Now she was cuddling two kids, playfully rocking them back and forth. Listening to them giggle as she leaned further into the couch lifting their little feet off the ground. Up high, high, high. Twist from left to right as if she might toss them away like hand grenades, then lower them, and repeat the motions.

She literally spent 15 minutes playing with them till she tired and played dead. The kids then decided they would resuscitate her by jumping on her. Namjoo deeply regretted it when Moowon's knee collided into her rib cage. That was when she called quits and convinced them to play with the animal figurines Sehun had bought.

Finally ignored, Namjoo left them to explore. Sehun's home was a lot more organized than she had expected. Living with a child, of course he would be. The smell of frying meat made her stomach rumble as she lifted her head up to stare at the tall curtain. She glanced into the kitchen to see Joomi at the stove lifting a spoon to Sehun's lips telling him to taste her dish. They appeared so intimate, like a wife cooking with her husband. Embarrassed she had watched them Namjoo looked away. She should have just dropped Moowon off earlier and left. Now she was trapped here so uncomfortably. Feeling foolish she had even brought flowers.

Sehun's personal life didn't matter to her, but she would have appreciated a forewarning about Joomi. Shoving the thoughts aside Namjoo ran her eyes over the assorted books on Sehun's bookshelf. To her he appeared more like an outdoors adventurer, not a reader. She spotted several children's books, youth books, textbooks from his university days, and then the many dozen magazines. More interested in them she pulled a random one out from the pile.