Jae Ham
Sunday afternoon. The sky is still gray but the thunder and lightning has stopped.
"You've gotten so tall!" Son-Won Ham throws her arms over my shoulders, then proceeds to hug my grandparents--her in-laws--before embracing Gem, Cody, then Bianca.
"Hi, dad," I greet Kim Lee Ham, who looks exhausted from the long flight.
My father flashes me a wary smile. "I want to sleep," he says lazily.
That makes both of us. In the next hour or two, my friends drop by to see my parents, exchanging the usual 'it's been so longs!' and bear hugs and harmonious chitchats. After my friends have gone and my grandmother starts preparing for dinner, I sit on the sofa and fish out my phone to send a message to Sage.
How to compose a simple text? Should I begin it with a casual 'Hello'? or 'Hey'? Maybe a 'Are you doing anything'? No, that sounds off. Perhaps 'I was wondering..'? is innocuous enough?
"Who are you texting?" I don't notice that my mom is already hovering over my phone.
"Ah!" I jump, startled by her abrupt appearance. My phone slips from my palm and lands on my mother's lap. She grins victoriously before snatching the device and scanning the screen.
"Mom!" I hiss like a snake. "Give it back!"
"So her name is Sage.. Do you have any photos of her?" To my horror, mom quickly swipes a finger to open my gallery. "Here we are." After a minute, she goes "hmm" while studying the few pictures of Sage. "I approve."
"She's not my girlfriend!" I exclaim in frustration, clenching my jaw.
"That's disappointing." Mom looks bored as she throws the phone into my lap. She fixes me with a hard stare. "How long have you been courting her?"
"I'm not--" I don't bother finishing my sentence. I wash a palm along my face, feeling aggravated by this conversation.
"You're not even in the courtship stage yet? Oh, Jae." Mom shakes her head, crestfallen. "Judging from those pictures, you two look good together. I ship you with her."
My jaw drops. "You.. what?! Where did you get that word?!?"
"What rock have you been living under?" My mother glares at me. "Just because I'm pushing forty, doesn't mean I can't read webtoons."
"Mom, you're forty-f-" She puts her finger on my lips, dissuading me from announcing her real age.
"We do not speak of such things," she says with a saccharine tone. Her sharp eyes are daring me to continue. "Where's your father? Is he sleeping again?"
I nod my head as she pulls her hand back. "Of course he is." Then we both laugh.
"Like father, like son," mom says with head-shake. Her brown eyes slide over to my face. "How are you, Jae? Honestly." She gives me a loving look only a mother can wear.
One side of my lips tugs up in a crooked smile. I know what she means. "I'm alright," I admit, truthfully, weaving my fingers through my soft black hair. "It's been interesting these days."
"Hmm yes. Ah-Young mentioned that you became class vice president, that you've done some volunteer work, and that you're currently participating in a program at the orphanage. Normally, you would prefer to stay indoors, snoring the time away." She smirks knowingly. "Any reason for your change of heart?"
I narrow my eyes at my mother, not liking her tone, nor the implication. Is she insinuating that I did all those things because of Sage? I part my lips to shoot a defiant retort, only for the realization to dawn on me so suddenly, like a solid blow to the stomach: Though I'll never admit it out loud: Mom is right.
