Celeste and Albert were outside letting their Corgi, Rupert, do his business before they left. I took the opportunity to introduce everyone. Celeste was really excited to meet him. Rupert made a beeline for Minhyuk and greeted him like he had known him for years. Minhyuk squatted down to pet him and introduce himself. Rupert was so happy to meet a puppy in human form that he could not contain himself. It was a struggle getting him to go back inside, and then he ran straight to the window to watch as we loaded into the car.
Before we got out of the driveway, Celeste was turned around in her seat asking Minhyuk a thousand questions while Albert nagged at her to turn back around. Min answered her politely. I could see he was amused.
Celeste was one of those people that it is impossible not to love. She was short, slightly plump, and full of life. Her clothes reflected her personality, very bright and colorful. After watching the Dramarama video with Tori, she asked Tori to show her some others. She decided she liked K-Pop. She hadn't decided on a bias group yet, but half of her questions were related to the way Monsta X's videos linked together to create a story. Like many of us Monbebes, she was curious about what the symbolism meant.
Albert piped up a couple of times asking his own questions. He was almost as feisty as Celeste. He hadn't really discovered K-Pop yet, but he knew who Minhyuk was because of Tori. Celeste shushed him each time and he would fuss at her then turn back to driving. It was a short ride to the rink, so thankfully Min didn't have to get too deep into the theory.
Minhyuk greeted everyone with hugs, except Bobby who preferred the man-hug with the clasped hands between them. He thought he was too cool for hugs now. Tori was warming up on the ice with the other skaters. Minhyuk had asked earlier if there was a private box where they could sit so they were not a distraction for the crowd or the judges. Nikki pointed out the VIP box over by the control booth.
"You guys can head on up there if you want. There is not much time left for warm up, so I am going to stay here with Tori."
"I am going to go up to the booth with Minhyuk. I want to be in both places, but I can't. I can still watch her, and she will know I am up there." I was feeling a little guilty not staying on the floor, but my being there would not make any difference in her performance.
"She figured you would," Nikki winked at me.
Tori finally noticed who was standing beside me. I heard a squeal from across the ice and before I knew it, Tori came sliding across the ice, skidding on the sides of her skates to come to a stop just before the wall. "Samchon!" She called all of them uncle and they loved it. Min leaned over the wall for a hug. "I didn't know you were coming! Aunt Sunny, did you know?" She looked at me and I grinned and winked at her. She just smiled back. "Samchon, did you see me skating?" she asked excitedly.
"Not yet, I just got here. But I will be watching!" He leaned closer to whisper, "the others are coming too." Tori squealed and bounced excitedly. "We'll be right up there," he pointed to the box over the ice. Tori nodded.
Nikki reminded her, "you need to get back and finish your warm-up. You have a lot of people coming to cheer you on. I know you want to show them your best." Several of Tori's classmates were coming and some family from her father's side. And now she knew all of Monsta X was coming too.
"Yes mommy. Be sure to watch, Samchon Minhyuk! And you too, Aunt Sunny!" she lilted as she skated backwards to the middle of the ice with a wave. Minhyuk smiled and nodded. He seemed just as excited as she was.
We watched as Tori did several more spins, jumps, and high kicks before we headed to our special area. I got dizzy just watching her spin! The seats were filling up as it was almost time for the competition to begin. People had already begun noticing Minhyuk, and he wanted to make sure they were focused on Tori, so we headed to our seats. On our way up, we spoke to the people in charge, and they told us of the back entrance where the other members should enter. Min texted the guys to let them know where to enter and where to go once they were inside. They were not far away now.
We stood in the window watching as the first skater took the ice. She seemed to lack confidence in herself. I noticed she seemed to be thinking too much and hesitating before her jumps and spins. It felt awkward... not fluid. The second girl started off a little better than the first but was still not as good as our girl. Maybe I was biased, but I really didn't think she came close to Tori's level.
Minhyuk was focused on the ice. He commented how similar the sport was to dancing, yet so different in its discipline. He seemed to be enjoying the performance. We heard voices outside the door and then it opened slowly, and the other 6 members filed in. They each gave me a hug as they came in. I missed most of the third skater. Min shushed them and pointed to the ice. "Tori is up next! You guys have to see!"
They all came closer to the window so they could get a good view. The third skater finished her routine and the crowd cheered. She almost fell on one of her jumps, but she corrected herself in time and recovered. You could tell where her family and friends were seated from the supportive cheers and hoots.
Now it was time for the one we were waiting for. We all stood close to the glass, focused on the spectacle below. Min stood behind me with his arms wrapped around me and his chin resting on my head. I felt safe and loved. I smiled to myself and nuzzled my head against his chest. I had my phone ready to record her performance. It was being recorded professionally too.
They announced Tori over the PA system and she gracefully took her starting pose, which was the same as Dramarama. The music started and she began to glide across the ice as if she were weightless. The routine she had choreographed was a mix of some dance moves from the song, classic ice-skating jumps and spins, and some hapkido kicks and moves. It was fascinating to watch, and I caught the guys dancing a little as they watched. Whenever she would spin or jump, the guys would yell, "whoa!" or "wow!". They especially loved the dance moves she did in between.
Her performance was flawless and looked effortless. After she took her ending pose, the entire place erupted and everyone stood. I jumped and screamed. She killed it. I was so proud. The guys cheered with me and we saw Nikki jumping and cheering. This was a state final and there were only 3 more skaters. This was the best of the best, but the rest had nothing on Tori.
After all the skaters finished and the judges were tallying their votes, the eight of us headed down to join Nikki on the floor. Her eyes lit up when she saw Kyun, and I noticed his coy little smile. All the guys gave her hugs and there were murmurs and whispers all around. The judges named the top three and they all came to the front. They named the bronze and silver medal winners, and then gold... Tori!! My girl won! Nikki and I screamed and jumped, and the guys cheered. They played Dramarama over the PA while she posed for some press photos. When she started dancing to the song, the guys ran up to the wall and started dancing it with her. The crowd pretty much lost it as they realized who was there, dancing with Tori Randolf. Nikki and I made our way to where they all were.
I recorded it with my phone to show Min later. After they finished their dance, Tori picked up the bouquet of roses they had presented to her and waved to the audience. Her smile was brilliant and lit up the entire place. A reporter from a local newspaper came over to talk to her and asked if he could get a picture with her and Monsta X. She said that they were there as her family, not as Monsta X and declined. She told him he could have her picture since she was the gold medal winner. The reporter looked shocked. He tried to cajole her into saying yes. She told him that she was not going to use their fame to get attention. The guys just stood back and laughed, because it was painfully obvious that was exactly what the reporter was trying to do.
Tori went to change, and the guys finally said hello to Nikki. Kyun was careful since they were in public, but I could see that he wanted to eat her up. Bobby and Tori wanted to ride in the van, but they couldn't because of liability issues if there was an accident. So instead, Min and I rode with Nikki and the kids, and the rest of the guys rode in the van. We went back to Nikki's house to grill out. We had gone grocery shopping the night before and she was shocked at the amount of food I put in the cart. Having fed them on multiple occasions, I was familiar with the requirement. We asked the meat department manager to make the burger patties so we would not spend all our time doing that.
When we arrived home, Tori was riding high on her gold medal. She was still wearing it and kept dancing and spinning around. Wonho and Shownu danced with her and taught her a couple of new moves. Minhyuk and Kihyun jumped in to help with the last-minute things like slicing the toppings and getting it all on platters to carry out. I noticed Nikki and Kyun both disappeared for a few minutes and smiled to myself. Hyungwon made sure the plates, cups and utensils were on the tables. We brought everything out and started heating up the grill.
Celeste and Alfred came over and brought Rupert with them. Celeste was enjoying herself immensely, fluttering around the deck flirting with Monsta X. Alfred wasn't bothered by these handsome young men who were showing attention to his wife. He was sitting back and smiling at the whole thing. Still no sign of Nikki and Kyun.
Simon was playing with Rupert. I was really surprised that he got along with a dog. I was surprised that he got along with anyone, actually. Letting him stay here was the best thing I could have done for him. Seeing how content he was made me feel good and I knew I had made the right decision. He and Rupert were chasing each other, rolling around, and taunting each other. Rupert would bark at Simon, but it was tiny little soft playful barks. Simon would pounce on him then jump just out of reach. It was adorable.
Nikki had a huge grill and lots of outdoor seating and tables. It was all a few years old, but it was still in great shape. When Robert was alive, they had parties and cookouts often. This was the first time since he passed that there was this large of a gathering. Sometimes SeoYeon and Janie would come over for girls' night, but no true parties had happened in several years. I was happy to see it being used again. I felt confident that she had truly healed and was ready for the next chapter in her life.
I lifted the lid and before I could start placing the patties on the grill, Kihyun took the spatula out of my hand and gently pushed me towards Minhyuk. "Go be with your husband. He has been lost without you," he pointed with his chin as he smiled at me. I kissed him on the cheek and almost skipped over to Minhyuk. He and Joohoney were talking to Celeste and he had his back turned. I came up behind him and slinked my arms around his waist. I rested my head on his back and he held my arms in front, twisting his head to see me but I was too low. He turned and wrapped his arms around me. I looked up at him and the sun was directly behind his head. He was glowing, like the true sunshine that he is. I smiled at that thought.
He leaned down and kissed my forehead. "I like this. I like this very much," he said.
"What part?"
"The whole thing. Hanging out with family and friends at home, eating good food, having a normal life with you."
"Yeah, this is how normal people live. I don't know if we could be classified as normal, but we can pretend." He laughed at my assessment.
"You are right. You are always right, Jagiya."
I felt a hand on my arm and turned to see a glowing Nikki beside me. "Need some help?" she asked. The guys had taken over the grill, and everything else was ready.
"Nope, everything is ready. Just relax and enjoy the party!" I smiled at her.
I saw the look that Nikki and Kyun shared, and I knew for certain they had strong feelings for each other. I already knew this about Nikki, but my suspicions about his feelings were confirmed. He would ask about her from time-to-time back in Korea, and when I would talk about her his expression would soften. I had suspected for a while.
Kihyun announced that the burgers were ready so we all filled our plates and gathered at the tables. A few bites in, Tori bluntly asked Changkyun, "do you like my mom?" Both of them were caught off guard.
Nikki tried to deflect the question as to not put Kyun on the spot, but he just smiled and looked at Nikki. "Very much. I like your mom very much." He put his hand over hers on the table and gently caressed it with his thumb. The guys tried to keep from laughing.
"Are you guys dating?" Bobby's eyes narrowed and he turned his head slightly to the side as he began to connect the dots.
Kyun looked at Bobby, "well I would like to, but I don't know if your mom will go for it with the distance and all that." Nikki's startled expression made me want to laugh. She was completely caught off guard and unprepared for this moment.
"Well, have you asked her?" Tori followed up.
"Not exactly..." a glance back to Nikki who looked like she wanted to duck under the table and hide. She wasn't ready for the kids to know. She nervously tried to pull her hand away, but he held on and grinned. "Relax, babe. It's ok. They were going to figure it out eventually."
"Mommy, is Samchon Changkyun your boyfriend?" Tori almost squealed.
"No, I mean kinda... ugh, I don't know what we are."
"We are lo..." Nikki shot him a look that made him close his mouth and stop talking. The word 'lovers' was a bit too hard to deal with in front of the kids. He held a finger to his lips as if to shush himself and smiled at her. "How about it? Would you be my girlfriend, noona?" He smiled sweetly at her and then winked at the kids.
"I don't know if that is a good idea..." the kids cut her off.
"Come on mom, are you really gonna say no to being IM's girlfriend?" Bobby could not believe his ears.
"Yeah mommy, you should say yes," Tori provided her expert opinion as she popped a chip in her mouth. "He makes you smile."
"This is something that Changkyun and I need to discuss privately. I will take your opinions under advisement." She shot them a look as she stood from the table with her empty plate and turned to walk away. She stopped and turned back quickly, "and what do you mean he makes me smile?"
"I saw you the other night when you were talking to him on FaceTime. You were smiling. You haven't smiled much since Dad... well you just haven't." Nikki wasn't sure what to say. Kyun kept smiling at her and held her hand as she walked away to go inside.
"She will come around, don't worry," he turned back to the kids and winked again. They were smiling at the prospect. Kyun stood and followed Nikki inside. Tori nodded and took a sip of her soda.
Celeste was really in her element. She was getting attention from all the guys and getting to dote on her "grandkids". She and Alfred never had kids of their own. She told me once that "his boys are bad". Instead, they fostered many kids over the years. Celeste had tons of love still left to give now that they were no longer foster parents, so she showered it on Tori and Bobby. It was a great arrangement for everyone involved.
Min was playing with Rupert and Simon on the ground. Rupert was eating up the attention and Simon was jealous. I watched in amusement as Rupert bounced around Minhyuk and gave him kisses. Simon sat with his tail flipping against the deck, staring at Rupert. He was a talkative pup and made lots of cute little sounds. I think he and Minhyuk had a full-on conversation while I stood there.
I walked over and sat down beside him. Simon came over and climbed into my lap and started purring. I stroked his fur and he forgot all about the boys. Minhyuk looked at me with a huge smile. "Rupert is so cute! Why don't we get one? Every child should have a dog, and it will be good practice for us." Rupert stopped and looked at me expectantly too. "Besides, look at that fluffy butt!"
"Hey now, you are only supposed to look at my fluffy butt," I feigned jealousy.
He grinned and leaned over to whisper in my ear, "your butt is definitely not fluffy. It is perfect, and round, and sexy, and it drives me wild." He kissed my neck for emphasis. I giggled.
"Well, I cannot argue that Corgi butts are one of the cutest things on the planet, so I suppose I will give you a pass on that. I would love to have a Corgi. I fell in love with them when I met Rupert. I was going to get one, but I decided a cat was better with my lifestyle at the time. I was always working. I was going to name him Sherman," I laughed.
Min's smile grew even bigger. "Sherman, it is then," he stood up and gave me a quick kiss before running around the yard, playing with the pup. Rupert stayed by his side the rest of the night. Simon decided he was done and went to find a spot to sun himself.
Tori was the star of the evening. She showed off her Hapkido routine and then danced a few songs with the guys. Celeste even got up and did a few moves with them. Minhyuk was his usual hyper self. I loved watching him have fun. It still surprised me how calm he could be with me, versus how loud and boisterous he was with everyone else. Shownu had said at our wedding how he had calmed down since meeting me.
The sun was getting low, and we were still going strong. We had already cleaned up and put everything away. Nikki stepped inside and flipped on the outdoor lights. Suddenly the whole deck area was lit up with tiny white lights. We had lit the tiki torches and some candles to fight off the mosquitos much earlier. Music was playing on the Bluetooth speakers, everyone was relaxed and having a great time. It was a really festive atmosphere.
I was sitting beside Minhyuk on the outdoor couch where I had accidentally slept a couple of nights before. My back was against him and his arm was around me. He was holding my hand on my stomach, watching my ring sparkle in the lights. Nikki and Kyun were sitting in the chairs beside us. Kyun was telling us how Minhyuk had requested a short break when they set up the tour dates. They were only able to get 3 days, but they were thankful to get what they could. Things would be different after this tour. Rumors were already circulating on social media that they were going to disband. So far, the guys had only responded that that was not true. They would make an official announcement when they got back.
He leaned in close to my ear and said softly, "there is another thing that will change when we get home."
I turned my head toward him, "what's that?"
"Looking into adoption agencies. I have a couple already in mind. We just need to meet with them and pick one, then start the process." I turned so that I was facing him more.
"I cannot wait. You are going to be the best father of ever," I kissed him softly.
"And you are going to be an amazing mother. It won't be much longer... I promise."