Third Vampire Shadows (An Urban Paranormal Romance Novel) (2 page)

"Yeah, right. Now is the right time to explain," Mun Oh said sarcastically. "You did not just marry a man ten years older than you... you also adopted his insane daughter!"

"Shusshhh! Be quiet. She's not insane, okay? She's just..." She paused to think for a second, and then said, "Well, she's something else. But she's a nice girl once you get to know her."

Mun Oh rolled his eyes dramatically. "I highly doubt it. Besides, I do not have any intentions whatsoever of getting to know her."

•••

"Okay. Lemme get this straight,"
Hyeon
Jin
said after hearing her father's brief explanation. "You've been together for almost three years now and she never even once mentioned something about having a brother to you. But now, you actually believed that he
IS
indeed her brother?" she asked, suspicious.

Kim
Junjin
raised an eyebrow. "What are you implying?"

"I'm saying that you don't just give your trust to anyone right away! Especially nowadays! Are you going insane?"
Hyeon
Jin
said.

"Listen here, young lady,” he said. "Ji Sun is not just
anyone
—she's your stepmother. And for the last three years that we've been together, she has
never
lied to me, not even once.
You,
however, have lied to me more times than anyone I've ever known."

Hyeon
Jin
's expression showed that her father had clearly struck a nerve.

"You told me you'd stop bullying other people if I bought you a cell phone,"
Kim
Junjin
continued, sounding disappointed. "But you didn't stop and I don't even know if you have any intentions of ever stopping that pathetic
habit
of yours…
ever
."

I did stop
…
Jin
thought bitterly.
I stopped bullying five losers a day. Now I only bully one or two losers in a day…

"You assured me that your grades would go up once I bought you that laptop, but your grades are still dismal. And you always sleep in class, your teacher told me."

Hyeon
Jin
looked away innocently.
Well, you didn't buy me
the
laptop that I wanted,
she thought, still bitter.
You bought me a cheap, second-hand laptop that was slower than a freaking turtle!

Although her mind was reeling with thoughts and counter arguments, she knew it was unwise to voice them during a moment like this.

"I like sleeping when I'm bored," she finally said defensively. "You of all people know that."

"That's not the point. The point is—"
Kim
Junjin
started to say. "I almost forgot: you never told me that Park Juno already dumped you!"

Hyeon
Jin
's jaw dropped and
Kim
Junjin
shook his head; it was hard to tell whether he was shaking it in a disapproving or teasing manner.

"I wasn't— He didn't dump me, okay?" she stammered. "It was a mutual decision, you know, to cool things off for a while... so I could focus on other stuff like my studies."

"Hmm..."
Kim
Junjin
said, nodding, but he was clearly unconvinced.

Hyeon
Jin
swore under her breath. "I'm so gonna kill that dork."

"He never told me about it, either," he informed her.

"Huh?"

"Shin
Erin
told me."

Another curse escaped her mouth and she pouted. Shin
Erin
was her best friend. Or at least she was
supposed
to be
her best friend. Why would Shin Erin tell her father about this?

"We're getting off the subject here,"
Kim
Junjin
said. "The point is that Ji Sun was just as surprised as you and I regarding this matter. So the least we could do is to make her feel at ease."

"Which means...?"
Hyeon
Jin
asked.

"Mun Oh will be staying here with us. At least, until he and Ji Sun have settled everything," he stated in a business-like tone. "I think they have some personal issues and I don't really wanna meddle," he added in reply to
Jin
's questioning look.

"So... how long will it take for them to 'settle' whatever it is they need to settle?"

He shrugged. "Dunno. Two weeks... a month or so..."

Her eyes widened. "What?! Couldn't you just step in and settle it for them? Or at least tell them to resolve it quickly?"

“Why are you in such a hurry? I think having him around here would be good for you. He's the same age as you, and I personally think he's a well-mannered young lad."

"What, is he your son? You never talk about me that way."
Hyeon
Jin
muttered grudgingly. "Honestly, I don't like him."

"There you go again with your 'quick judging,'" he said.
Hyeon
Jin
rolled her eyes. "I bet you two will get along just fine in a matter of days," he assured her.

"Impossible."

"You know, he's a smart and friendly guy—your exact opposite, and they say
opposites attract
, right?" he said.
Hyeon
Jin
stared at him in disbelief. "Trust me; I'm an excellent judge of character."

Hyeon
Jin
didn't say a word, but kept rolling her eyes in vexation.

"Oh, and he could even tutor you in all your failing subjects—especially English! You know, he's been studying in different countries all around the world ever since he was a kid! And he told me that he can speak eight different languages!"
Kim
Junjin
went on excitedly, like a proud parent talking about his own child's achievements. "Eight languages! You can't even speak
our
language well!"

"OKAY! ENOUGH!"
Hyeon
Jin
snapped. "You can do whatever you want with him as long as he stays out of my way."

"Great!" he said. "Oh, and there's one more thing. He's gonna be using your room."

"Wait—what?"

"You know, same as always... You share your room with our visitors."

•••

Inside Hyeon Jin's room, Mun Oh yelled, "WHAT!" at his sister.

"See, we don't have a guest room, so... you're gonna have to share this room with her. It's always been like that when we have visitors," Ji Sun explained. "And
Hyeon
Jin
's ok with it," she added upon seeing Mun Oh's confused expression.

"No... No, no, no..." Mun Oh repeated over and over again, shaking his head. "There is no WAY that I'm gonna share a room with that— that lunatic!"

"You don't have a choice," Ji Sun declared firmly. "If you want to stay here, you're gonna have to play by the rules. Unless you want to stay outside—in the living room."

Irked, Mun Oh clicked his tongue. "Who says I want to stay here longer than I already have? I would’ve gone now if you had just—" he stopped and lowered his voice to a whisper. "If you had just done the ritual right there and then, I wouldn't even be caught up in the middle of all this."

Ji Sun appeared to be highly offended, and Mun Oh suddenly knew why.

He looked away.
"
Sorry
. I just have to do this," he said. "I wasn't given a choice. If you think I'm doing this because I like it, then you're wrong."

There was a moment of awkward silence, during which Mun Oh stared at his feet intently, as though they were the most interesting things he'd ever seen, while Ji Sun stroked the teacup still in her hand.

"I know you weren't given a choice," Ji Sun mumbled. "But please don't put me in that same position.”

Just then, the door opened and the father and daughter came walking in; the former beaming from ear to ear while the latter looked as though she had swallowed a tube of toothpaste.

"So! Everything's all right now,"
Kim
Junjin
proclaimed in a booming voice. Ji Sun walked over to his side, forcing a smile. Mun Oh and
Hyeon
Jin
were deliberately trying to avoid each other's eyes.

"Mun Oh will sleep on the mattress here. You can have the bed to yourself,
Hyeon
Jin
," Ji Sun said.

Mun Oh glared at his sister while
Hyeon
Jin
smirked.
"
Of course.
It's my room so I should have the bed
to
myself
,"
she said.

"I think we should eat. It's getting late,"
Kim
Junjin
said, and he led the way out of the room. Ji Sun followed him shortly afterward, and Mun Oh did, too, sneering at
Hyeon
Jin
as he passed by her.

The first few minutes of dinner went smoothly. Everyone was preoccupied with the sumptuous meal that Ji Sun prepared, and it seemed like they had all momentarily forgot everything that transpired within the last hour. It would've gone on peacefully if
Hyeon
Jin
hadn't opened her mouth to speak.

"So..." she began in a loud voice, causing the three other people at the table to look up from their plates.

“So... if you are Ji Sun’s brother... then that makes you—" she looked directly at Mun Oh, "my
uncle?"

An awkward moment of silence ensued. Kim
Junjin
and Ji Sun exchanged questioning looks, Mun Oh's expression was unfathomable, while
Hyeon
Jin
cheerfully went back to her food.

"How old are you again?"
Hyeon
Jin
continued after swallowing a piece of egg roll.

"Fifteen... and a half," Mun Oh replied flatly.

Hyeon
Jin
chuckled. "You're younger than me and you're supposed to be my
uncle
.
"

Mun Oh raised an eyebrow.

"He's turning 16 this coming month," Ji Sun said.

Mun Oh threw her a look but she avoided it.

"Oh, really? When?"
Hyeon
Jin
asked.

Ji Sun opened her mouth, glanced at Mun Oh, and then closed it again.

"Hmm..."
Hyeon
Jin
said, nodding slowly, her expression victorious.

Kim
Junjin
finally realized that it was time for him to say something.

"We can celebrate his birthday—" he started to say in a jovial tone, but then he caught a glimpse of Ji Sun's reproving expression. "...Err... if you want," he ended in a small and somewhat embarrassed voice.

Hyeon
Jin
sipped from her glass of kiwi juice. "What country did you say you were from?" she asked, acting as though her father had never spoken.

Ji Sun was now as red as the slices of tomato on her plate.

Mun Oh finished chewing a small piece of steak before replying, in a highly amused manner, "
Ouagadougou
."

Hyeon
Jin
was about to nod but then, as the word sank in, she blinked.

The young bloodsucker grinned from ear to ear; his grin redolent with sweet retaliation. He silently counted to three, basking in his looming victory, before continuing.

"Oh... I forgot!" he exclaimed dramatically, carefully establishing eye contact with
Hyeon
Jin
. "Your father told me that you're not that good in geography. You probably have no idea where
Ouagadougou
is..." he said, shaking his head ruefully.

“Tsk, tsk," he said. “What a shame. It's a wonderful place, you know," he said in a feigned sympathetic tone.

Being a gentleman, Mun Oh waited for her to recuperate, gather her thoughts and come up with a witty reply. He had anticipated the blank look on her face. What he hadn't expected, however, was the frog-like smile slowly spreading on her face right before she spoke.

“How would I know where that damned place is?” She smirked. “I bet you’re the only one at this table who knows about it. It’s not even worth knowing about.”

She looked at her father, hoping to get some hints of assent. But
Kim
Junjin
bit his lip, signaling an “uh-oh” moment for her. Ji Sun quickly concentrated on her food, apparently not wanting to join in the disastrous conversation.