A/N: Just in case you don't follow me, or might have happened to miss my announcement. I created a Ko-fi account where people donate money directly to me via PayPal (the same payment service that Weverse and many other companies use.) I'll link it to the comments in this paragraph, but you can also find on the Conversations tab of my profile.
I'd like to say that the next few weeks that followed our first dates and Daisy and Bangtan's ceremony were blissful ones where I got to know each of my soulmates even more. And for the most part that was accurate. However, setting aside time to spend with Jeong Gyu specifically was a lot more difficult to arrange than the other two.
I remember back to the reception. We spent time at our own table during the ceremony and reception. When I saw the daisies for the first time I turned to Jeong Gyu and asked about them. "Are those daisies that you grew and bred yourself?"
He smiled softly at me. "Not exactly." I wrinkled my nose at his crypticness, which of course had him chuckling slightly in response. "The daisies are mine, but I didn't breed them to create the special colors. I didn't have that kind of time unfortunately. Luckily daisies don't necessarily have to be bred to get special colors. Most of the daisies they are holding have been dyed."
"You can dye daisies like fabric?" I can't help but be truly confused by this idea, and I'm sure my shocked skepticism is clearly written on my face.
He chuckles again, and while it's at my expense I can't help but be charmed by the hearty sound. "Not using the same method, no. But if you put a daisy in a glass of water that has either food coloring or watercolor paint added to them the daisy will turn that color. It only takes them about an hour to start changing color." He explained it to me.
"Huh. That's kind of interesting."
When the music started playing after the ceremony I took turns dancing with each of them on the dance floor. I discovered quickly that each of the maknaes of Bangtan must have had some genetic innate talent, because their brothers were great dancers as well. Had they honed their own skill they probably would have been able to become Idols themselves. Although reflecting on that possibility I am kind of glad they aren't. I love my new sister dearly, but I definitely don't want a life parallel to her own. Not to mention I know each of my soulmates are all quite happy with their own choices career wise.
As the reception was drawing to a close I realized I wasn't ready for the night to end. Luckily, my soulmates must have tapped into my thoughts because Jihyun turned to me. "Why don't we all go out to get ice cream? I don't know about anyone else, but I'm not quite ready to say goodbye yet."
I'm excited for the prospect until Jung Hyun becomes the voice of reason. "I really don't think there are any ice cream shops open this late."
I shrug my shoulders. "We could always go to a Convenience Store. I know it's not the same as hand dipped ice cream." I pause for a second to let them consider my cooperative suggestion. I definitely don't want to go home yet, and this would be a happy medium.
"How are we going to do this though? Jihyun and I rode in together. I imagine Jeong Gyu rode in with his family since they are all staying in the same hotel together." Jung Hyun's logic and reasoning weighs in once more, and I know that it's something that we all will grow to depend upon as we immerse ourselves in our lives together.
It takes me a second to realize that I have my own car also. I frown as I share this with them. "Yeah, I drove here too to help Daisy get ready before the ceremony."
"What if we all meet up at my hotel? I could ride with Jiwoo, and Jihyun could ride back with Jung Hyun. We could leave the cars in the parking garage there for the time being and walk to find the nearest convenience store." Jeong Gyu suggests.
"I don't mean to be a jerk about this, so forgive me for asking. But why do you get to be the one who rides with Jiwoo?" Jihyun asks, and even though he gave a precursor to his question, to me it seemed unnecessary because his words don't come out hostile at all. He is merely stating how he would love to ride with me as well, but he needs a reason why Jeong Gyu gets to be my passenger instead of him.
Jeong Gyu sighs, and I can tell his mood has become gloomy all of the sudden. "Well, I hate to dampen our spirits by adding negative thoughts, but the truth of the matter is that I won't be able to see her as much as you two do. At least not until we are ready to find a place together that is suitable for my career. I know that won't be an easy task due to my own stipulations, which means it could be months before I get to spend much time with her at all. I just want to--"
Jihyun puts his hand on Jeong Gyu's shoulder to stop him from having to explain more. "You're right. I'm sorry I asked."
Luckily the drive was lengthy enough that our moods were bright again once we pulled into the parking garage and got out of our cars. Jihyun admitted that he already found a convenience store nearby. "I can't take credit for thinking of that though. Jung Hyun suggested I search for one while he was driving."
The convenience store is only a few blocks away, and aside from our light hearted discussion the walk is a quiet one due to the late hour. We find the ice cream freezer almost as soon as we enter through the automatic doors. "Ladies first." They all tone together in unison.
I smile warmly at them before shaking my head and waving my hands back and forth to add emphasis to my declination. "No. I'm not sure what I want yet." I somewhat have an idea, but I want to sit back and see what each of them picks first.
Jung Hyun grabs a Papico. I've had the chocolate ice cream that comes in the plastic drink-like container before, but I wasn't really a fan of how cold my hands became from trying to warm up the plastic in order to get the ice cream thawed out enough that when you squeeze the bottle it would come out the top.
Jihyun selects a Samanco. The carp bread filled with vanilla ice cream and red bean paste is one of my personal favorites also, but I don't think I am wanting red bean paste right now myself.
Jeong Gyu surprises me the most by going for the Good Corn. I haven't had it myself, but others have told me that the corn on the cob shaped ice cream tastes like the buttered popcorn flavored Jelly Belly jelly bean. What turned me off from personally trying it wasn't the flavor though. It was the whole kernels of corn that appeared throughout the actual ice cream.
I decide that I want something fruity so I select a strawberry flavored Melona bar. Honestly I probably would have gone for the melon flavored instead, but it was sold out. Unsurprising since it's their most famous flavor.
Time slips away from us as we savor our ice cream and walk alongside the normally busy streets. Before we know it another hour has passed us by. "I hate to say it, but I should probably get back to the motel. We are heading back home early in the morning."
Jung Hyun nods his head. "Yeah, it's getting really late. We should probably call it a night here."
From that night in late April until the later half of June I didn't get many opportunities, if any, to see much of Jeong Gyu. It's just simply too long of a drive, and he is too busy working on the farm as well as tending to his flowers. I spend as much time with my other soulmates as I can, but it unfortunately isn't the same. My growing anguish begins to affect my relationships with the other two as well.
"I think it's time we consider finding an apartment for all of us." Jung Hyun says during one of our Zoom sessions with each other.
Jeong Gyu frowns. "I can't be away from the greenhouse though."
"That's why we are going to find an apartment with one." Jung Hyun insists.
"But, I can't imagine that something like that would be easy to find. Nor can I imagine it would be very cheap either." Jeong Gyu's frown grows deeper. "I'm sorry, but I am starting to feel like an inconvenience for everyone."
"An inconvenience? No, no." I quickly try to reassure him.
"While it will be on the difficult side to find something for all of us. It won't be impossible, and the need definitely outweighs the cost." He pauses for a second. "I can seek out help regarding a way to locate an apartment with a greenhouse. Luckily, I have a friend who happens to be a realtor. I can get a hold of her and let her know what we are looking for." I keep becoming more and more thankful for my oldest soulmate.
Despite Jung Hyun's connections and Jihyun's positive outlook in general, the few apartments that his realtor friend finds for us simply don't fit what we are looking for. It isn't until June nineteenth that we come across a beautiful apartment that would suit us perfectly. Well, at least as a starting home since it only has four bedrooms.
I attach my cell phone to a selfie stick so I can give Jeong Gyu a guided video tour to find out what he thinks. "This is the dining room, although I am probably going to end up using part of it as my home office."
He nods. "It's roomy enough, and we don't necessarily have to have a full dining room set. We could always just use that built-in bar behind you."
I smile as I virtually lead him over to that space. I learned over time that while myself and Jung Hyun don't really cook, my other two soulmates were fond of the culinary arts. Jihyun was even given classes after he was signed on to do the web design for a local high scale restaurant. "The chef gave me lessons in exchange for a discount of the rates for the website. I felt it was a reasonable exchange, and while he was a strict instructor I wouldn't say he was unfair."
I walk over to the huge living room, and despite our distance it almost feels like I am holding his hand and leading him around. "The area set aside for the dining room is a bit bigger, but I still feel like this space is more than adequate for our needs."
I led him through the next door way. "This will be my bedroom."
"Is this the only bedroom on the first floor?" He asks.
"Yes, the second floor is where the other three bedrooms are." I take the phone upstairs to show him the three bedrooms. I stop at the first. "Now, I know that you will probably make your own decision, but I thought you might like this room specifically."
"Oh?" He gives me a full wide smile. "Why is that?"
I smile back at him. "Because it's the closest one to the stairs that lead up to the terrace, and the greenhouse is basically right above this room."
He nods. "You're right. I would probably settle on that one for that reason alone."
"If I'm wrong then this one will be your room." I showed him the second bedroom.
"Why is the third one not an option? Why is it out of the running?" He asks curiously.
"Because Jung Hyun already claimed it due to the office entrance attached." I go through the third bedroom and show him the 'office' that is no bigger than a small walk-in closet. "Although I have a feeling that he will use this room as his bedroom, and the bedroom as his office."
"Would he even be able to get a bed to fit in there?" Jeong Gyu humoressly asks.
"Oh, I'm sure he would make one fit. Either that or he would probably buy a futon to use instead."
"How many bathrooms are there upstairs?" He asks.
I show him the bathroom that leads directly off the office as well as the one in the center off of a small community space. "I think essentially it will be you and Jihyun sharing one full bathroom. While the office does have a door leading to the main hallway, I'm sure Jung Hyun will probably want to use that as his personal bathroom."
He doesn't even have to prompt me to show him the rooftop terrace and greenhouse. "Wait, you can only access the terrace by using the staircase that leads to the greenhouse specifically?"
I smile at his excitement and nod my head.
"Huh. That will probably help control the temperature inside a bit easier. It's also a lot bigger than I expected."
"I know you would actually want something bigger, but this at least gives you a starting point."
"Yeah, I'll probably have to still keep some of the flowers behind, but my dad did hire an extra farm hand that I will be teaching to take care of the flowers in my stead. I still plan on going back at least once a month though, and during harvest time."
"That still opens a lot of time for us to spend together," I smile encouragingly. I add to myself, but I will still miss you when you're gone.
Jung Hyun, Jihyun, and I each take a couple of days off the following week to move our stuff in. Jeong Gyu moves in that weekend. We are just starting to get settled when we learn the unfortunate news that Daisy has been kidnapped.
A/N: Here's a look at some of the apartment I took inspiration from.
Here's the original floorplan followed by my poor reworking of it.
Original:
Mine
Resources for this chapter can be found linked here. I visited a lot of sites regarding Korean convenience store Ice Cream so I just linked them all.
I plan on their being at least two more potential Jiwoo and Soulmate bonus chapters before moving on to something different.