4147 Words

4614 words Updated 6/14/24

4904 words Updated 11/2/24

By the way this chapter in particular might be slightly different in the finished product. I sort of added some flavor for those readers who are reading this after having read Encoded in Our DNA.

Side characters that appear for the first time/mentioned for the first time in this chapter plus their pronunciations.

Yun Saeng-gi Issneun

Yewn (ew sound slightly extended) Sahn-gee Ee-Nin (sounds out a lot shorter than it looks. Thank goodness)

Young Sunghee

Pronounced just as it looks.

The stranger isn't certain why he chose to sit in the far corner booth of the restaurant. Nor does he have an explicable reason as to why he deemed it necessary to sit where he ended up facing the door. He only could rely on following the feeling in his gut which was telling him to keep an eye on the people coming and going today.

He can't help but be surprised by the next two customers that walk in. Both of his eyebrows lift high on his forehead, and he finds himself wondering who she might be. Granted, she can't help but stand out, not with that glorious red hair of hers. His instinct runs rampant once more, automatically telling him that he needs to keep his eye on her; that, for some reason, she must be someone of importance. She may be a foreign stranger, but of course he recognizes the man with her. Which somewhat solidifies his running belief regarding her potential significance. After all, why would he be with her if she weren't somehow notable. Although, due to her heritage, it makes sense why he might be acting as her lawyer. If only because of his chosen current speciality in the field. The stranger scrunches his eyebrows as he tries to remember more details regarding his new focus. Unfortunately all he remembers is that he has started dealing directly with cases involving foreigners relocations. He knows there is more to it than that though.

The stranger's attention veers back to the woman, and he can't deny that she is a beauty. Along with the hair she has beautiful light eyes, that he can't ascertain the color of from his location. He traces his eyes down her body and notices takes in her voluptuous curves. He has to blink and looks away for a moment when his mind catches on to his visceral reaction to her. I really shouldn't be looking at her like that. He is quite aware that it is human nature to find someone aesthetically pleasing, and that is what he reminds himself of in order to comfort his own guilt.

He lifts his menu up in front of his face when the gentleman with her lifts his head. Crap! I hope he didn't see me!

He considers quickly changing his seat, but he isn't sure that he should risk it. He may want to keep watching them, but the restaurant isn't big by any means. If he keeps gawking then he will be sure to be recognised. When the familiar lawyer finally sets down is when the stranger decides he should probably just head back to work while he is occupied with his client.

Dealing with the Embassy had been an experience. There was so much paperwork to go through, and I couldn't help but be overly thankful that I had Hyungsik with me to help me navigate it all. Shoot, I need to get in the habit of thinking of people by their surname. Plus, it's not like we are friends. He is my lawyer. So, that makes this more of a business relationship than a friendship.

His phone goes off again. He had practically ignored it when we filled out the paperwork. Especially the one involving the size of my stipend. Yeah, as a Soulmate who had to relocate overseas I earned an allowance. I wouldn't say I needed the extra money though. Not after having somehow managed to save almost $10,000 while living with Raina for the last few months. She barely even let me pay for food or hygiene supplies. Hell, I technically probably could have afforded purchasing a Coach ticket for myself instead of having her pay for the First Class tickets, but I won't look a gift horse in the mouth regarding that one. The comfort was definitely a blessing during the long second flight here.

Since we are done with the work side of things. He offered to take me out to eat for lunch. "I realize the menu is in Hangul, just answer a few questions for me, regarding your preferences. Do you like spicy food?"

I wouldn't be surprised if the restaurant also had a menu with the English names and descriptions on hand should I ask, or I could probably just dig my phone out and use an app to translate. However, this just feels like another way to get to know my new lawyer. Although 'new' is kind of a misnomer since I have never had a lawyer before now. He looks at me expectantly, and I half laugh when I realize I hadn't answered his question yet. "I can usually handle spicy foods, but I am not always in the mood for spicy foods. Also, there's some days where I don't think my body can handle it."

He smirks at me as if I told a joke. "I'd say that's true for anyone."

I roll my eyes at myself for the over explanation before taking a moment to consider how I feel about spicy foods today. "I'm not sure if I want anything spicy right now."

He nods. "Is there anything protein wise that you won't eat?"

"I'm not too fond of mollusks." I can't help the expression that appears on my face. "And before you ask, no I'm not fond of cephalopods either. I simply don't like the texture." Cephalopods are a type of mollusk too, but I wanted to make sure he understood it wasn't just the type that came from a shell that bothered me.

"So, what I am taking from that is that you really enjoy most seafood, at least outside of mollusks." He smirks at me again, probably laughing internally at my oversharing.

Although, it's not really a question; I choose to take it as one. "I do, but before now I have only really lived in landlocked states, Indiana and Illinois. I haven't tried much in the way of fresh fish, well outside of freshwater fish that is, and I know that the taste is very different from saltwater fish."

I pause for a second to regain my thoughts. "Even though I know crustaceans that are prepared and sold from places near the ocean taste differently, I couldn't help but grow addicted to shrimp especially. My dad would take us out to this restaurant once in a blue moon before–" I trail off and take a deep breath in an effort to stem off the range of melancholy emotions that come over me for a brief moment. "Anyway, aside from that the diner I worked at would sometimes get shrimp in, so I was able to indulge on my lunch breaks once in a while. I've always wanted to try crab and lobster, but my dad's complaint that it was too much work to get to the meat to crack them open could have been part of the reason why he wouldn't pay for-" I interrupt my own thought with a nervous chuckle. I had already been oversharing, and now I was about to start rambling stories about my parents. This time I stop myself, because I would have eventually become an emotional mess. I clear my throat before continuing on. "Well, I didn't get a chance to try either for some silly reason that I still don't completely understand." I shrugged my shoulders, and nervously laughed once more. Then I pause as something else occurs to me. Huh, I guess another reason why he was limiting me from trying either could have been to help him and mom save the money for my injection. Perhaps, the silly excuse he gave me was a smokescreen to cover up the truth.

Of course now my mind is back on money, and I inwardly cringe a little bit. I know it's not a bad thing to have money of my own. I am just not used to having so much extra money to get by with. Before now all my extra would go to saving for the serum injection for the last five years after all; it's going to take some getting used to the idea of having almost over $1400, well around $11,400 when you include the amount I had already saved. Crap, I need to start thinking of it on won instead of U.S. dollars.

I pull out my phone to pull up the currency converter application I recently downloaded. My eyes bulge out of my head at the large number from the conversion. In Korean Won I'm essentially a millionaire. As soon as the stipend goes through to my new bank account, Hyungsik... No Yun-ssi. I quickly remind myself to address him by his surname. Yun-ssi made sure to get me set up at a bank stationed near the hotel I was staying at before even going to the Embassy. As soon as the stipend goes through I will have 15,790,881₩.

He must be done with his phone for now because he smiles at me and starts back in on our conversation. "I'll ask you again. Is there any protein you won't eat outside of mollusks?"

"No, oh I should say, I know it's not a protein per se, but I don't like seaweed. Or at least not when it is a big sheet, like with gimbap for example. The few other dishes I've had where it was cut up finely have been fine thus far." Glad he got my mind off of money again, at least for now.

"Okay, what about a favorite protein?" He asks.

I shrug my shoulders. "Outside of the ones I mentioned I am pretty flexible. I'm not sure I have a favorite."

"How do you feel about fried foods?" He asks.

I smile in response. "I love them." I answer just before his phone goes off again.

He smiles at it a few moments, types something up really quick, and looks back up at me before setting it back down. "Looks like Kim Kwang-Min-ssi agreed to the conditions of your paperwork. You should have another million won, as a sign on bonus for your new job, by the end of the business day sitting in your account."

So that's... I physically gulp. 16,790,881₩!?!?!? I look down at my phone and quickly access my bank app I added after the bank trip so I could check on my account. How!?!? It's already there! All of it!!! The stipend and the sign on bonus.

Before I can voice my rebuttal the waitress comes over to take our order. I want to sputter off my annoyance at him for asking for the sign on bonus without consulting me, but the waitress being there now gives me time to sit and rationalize for a moment. I realize and come to terms with the fact that it's not unheard of for many occupations to offer a sign on bonus. Not to mention the fact that the company did mess up with my paperwork originally.

Yun-ssi rattles off our order, and that's when I get sidetracked by the fact that we never actually finished our conversation about food. He never offered up suggestions, or perhaps that was his plan all along. To figure out what I would like from the questions he asked me.

"What did you order for us?" I ask after the waitress leaves.

"You'll see." He takes a sip from his water glass. "So, I'm still free for the rest of the day. I'd like to offer to take you to a nearby boutique. I know one of the employees and the owner, and I'm sure I can get you a discount for a new career wardrobe."

Huh. Yeah, I would need more clothing for my job. Pretty sure wearing jeans every day would be frowned upon, even if my job is mostly just babysitting Minsook, who I can tell probably gets into a lot of trouble. I cringe inwardly at my phrasing. I shouldn't have referred to it as babysitting my Soulmate. That just sits funny thinking about it like that in my head. It feels like a lead ball forming in the pit of my stomach. Yes, don't think of it like that. I'll take it seriously, no matter what tasks I am given. I'll have to check when my first day will officially be once we get back to the company building. It could be as early as tomorrow after all.

"Yeah, I definitely could use at least a few things suitable for the office." I frown. "It's going to be rough finding something to hide–" I interrupt my own train of thought by offering an awkward expression and subtly trying to point at the mark hidden behind under the collar of the shirt I am currently wearing.

"Well, luckily the employee I know at the nearby boutique I suggested loves to assist shopping with stipulations." He shrugs. "He'll enjoy the challenge."

"But, he can't know–" I'm interrupted by our food arriving. I can't help but immediately salivate at the breaded meat dish situated on my plate beside a bed of rice. "What's this?" There is also a side salad and soup in separate dishes, along with a sauce of some sort, but I am really mostly asking about the protein.

"Donkatsu, or fried pork cutlet." He points at the soup. "Doenjang jjigae, it's a soybean paste stew with pork and veggies." Then he points at the mysterious sauce. "A Korean barbecue sauce, but I suggest trying it without first. Some people don't even feel like it needs the sauce. Other people prefer to add a bit more flavor and moisture to the dish. It all comes down to your own individual palate."

I try it without the sauce first, and then I cut off the second bite and dip it into the sauce. The sauce is very different to what I am used to when it comes to a barbecue sauce, but that doesn't make it unenjoyable. "I like it both with the sauce and without it." I smile at Yun-ssi and offer my thanks. Then I take my spoon in hand to try the stew. In the bowl of the spoon I spot an unfamiliar vegetable. "What's this?"

Yun-ssi finishes his bite before answering me. "Mu, Korean radish. Sometimes the soup uses potato in the recipe instead, but personally I prefer the slight bite of the radish instead."

I sample the spoonful, and my eyes widen in surprise at both the flavor at the slightly spicy kick. "Admittedly, I've never eaten a cooked radish in my life, but that was delicious." I smirk at him playfully. "Although, I think I did say I wasn't in the mood for anything spicy." He makes a move like he is going to apologize or defend himself and I shake my head to tell him I am just teasing. Then, I refocus on the bowl of stew in front of me. I dig around the bowl for a second curious to see what other veggies are in the broth. I find the spicy culprit to probably be the red chili peppers floating in the sauce, although due to the reddish tint of the broth I wouldn't be surprised if the stew also uses gochugaru in the recipe. The other veggies include zucchini, diced onion, and green onions.

As I'm eating I notice that I have settled into a routine. A bite of stew, then a bite of the pork cutlet without sauce, a bite with, a bite of my salad, and then wash, rinse, and repeat. Before I knew it only had crumbs left from my pork cutlet, and what little of my stew was left couldn't be scooped with the spoon.

The waitress, who has had the perfect balance of giving us space and making sure we had everything we may need, must notice we are done with our meal and places the bill on the table. Yun-ssi leans over to share something with me. "By the way, tipping here in South Korea is very different from tipping in the United States. In fact, it practically isn't done at all. If you are in a more Western influenced restaurant it's acceptable to give a tip of 5 or 10%. If you offer a tip here it would most likely be politely refused."

"As someone who lived off of the tips I made, I definitely appreciate the heads up. Is there anything else I need to know regarding tips though. I can't guarantee I'll remember them all, but I will try."

He grins at me. "I'll tell you what. There is a website I know of that would probably help you understand better than me simply rattling off the information." He asks for my phone, and I unlock it and hand it to him. He offers it back to me. "I just looked it up in your web browser. It will be there the next time you pull that application up."

"Thank you very much, Yun-ssi." I bow forward slightly in my seat and smile warmly at him.

He smiles at me. "You catch on quickly, but don't worry about the formalities unless we are in a business environment. I figure you can use some friends outside of–" He interrupts himself by looking around and remembering where we are. "Well you know who I mean without having to elaborate."

"I do, and I could definitely use a friend or two." I smile warmly. I'll just have to keep myself mindful of the setting and whether I should be calling him Hyungsik or Yun-ssi.

"I'm pretty sure I can get you at least two more before the day is out." He ushers me over to where he parked his car, and once we get in I am thinking more about the money I am going to be spending than about the fact that someone else could be potentially let in on my secret.

We end up getting lucky on finding a parking space right in front of the cute fashion boutique he mentioned. Once I am standing in front of it I find myself stressing all over again. I don't want to bring up the reason for my nerves here, outside on the sidewalk; I'd much rather talk inside, and that's only if the boutique is as empty as it seems to be. The display windows have draped curtains behind the mannequins, blocking the view of the sales floor and the window on the door is made of beveled stained glass making it impossible to see through.

We open up the door, and I barely get a sense of the young man that runs over and throws himself in Hyungsik's arms. "Well, someone is enthusiastic to see me." He pulls slightly out of his arms so he can look down into his eyes affectionately. Then turns to me. "Lily, this is Yun Saeng-gi Issneun. My Soulmate."

"We aren't traditionalists. Normally a married couple, or even a couple that goes through the more modern ceremony in Korea doesn't take on their spouse's surname. Our marks aren't anywhere suitable for the public though, so I insisted I take his name instead as a way to let the world know he's mine." He offers up his hand for me to shake instead of bowing. I can't help but feel momentarily fazed by the fact that he is not only speaking to me in English, but that he is also addressing me in a more Western fashion. "Oh, and you can just call me Saeng if you prefer. I know my name is a mouthful. I changed it myself after my family kicked me out for being bisexual. It means animated or vivacious."

Hyungsik laughs at that. "Which he definitely is."

For a brief moment I was thinking about the idea of a ceremony or wedding in my future. More than likely a more modern ceremony with the amount of Soulmates I have. Traditionalists weren't overly fond of weddings when it came to same sex couples and women who were fated to end up with more than one man. I'm not sure how we could even have one though due to their popularity, or if they were even thinking about the possibility right now since we were keeping my existence under wraps. I wasn't too worried about it though; we were connected by fate and our marks after all. While my mind wandered through that bit of history, I can't let myself pause and consider whether or not I want to have some kind of ceremony to celebrate our connection. I can't think of it when we are trying to keep my identity, at least who I am to my Alluvion, a secret.

After those thoughts dwindle away I replay what Saeng just said in my head, and I can't help but be reminded of Carson's story and briefly get saddened by the idea of this happy young man also going through a similar fate. "I hope you didn't have to wait long to get the Amorium serum injection then, or for you to find each other."

"From what I have been told, the injection is far more costly in the states than it is here. I think that's because our country wasn't as affected by veleniose as yours was. There was a death toll still, but it was substantially smaller in number than most of the Western world. Most especially the United States from my understanding." Well that's not something I knew about, but that's because I hadn't really dived into too many stories outside of those that happened in my own country.

I was only twelve when the disease first made its appearance, and I was fifteen when the numbers infected were dropping. I was mostly fixated on my life as a tween and teenager, and I hadn't really absorbed too many facts when it came to the disease outside of the United States. I quickly started to feel awful about how narrow minded I was regarding my thoughts back then. The only thing overseas reported, that I definitely remember, was the first documented case of multiple Soulmates. I believe it happened somewhere in South America, but I can't even recall that exact fact for certain anymore.

"My point is that I got my Amorium injection the minute I turned twenty. We were able to find each pretty easily due to a database that the clinics offering the injection started." Hyunsik explained.

I frown. "But why would my–" I glance quickly over at Hyungsik.

"Don't worry. Idols and actors come in here all the time. The owner and the clientele have signed mountains upon mountains of NDAs to protect the Idols and their managers that come in here." Hyunsik places a hand on my shoulder. "To clarify, I'm saying it's okay for him to know your secret. Technically, it's okay for any of the employees that work here to be aware of it, but I know him and the owner specifically can be the most trusted."

"You mean owners. You seem to always forget that the two of them signed a contract about a year ago stating they would be co-owners from here on out. Kind of interesting since it was a contract that went through a lawyer from your law firm." Saeng teases.

"Did I hear my ears burning over here?" The man that comes over screams that he is even more exuberant and boisterous than Saeng, if that is even remotely possible. He is wearing a gorgeous black satin looking blazer, or perhaps it's a tuxedo jacket, with burgundy, plum, and maroon flowers ornamentally embroidered into the fabric. A black silk looking dress shirt underneath, and he has gone without a tie instead wearing an ornamental silver collar chain. The fasteners pinning the chain in place were highly detailed wings. His chestnut brown hair with natural copper highlights and hazel eyes, which were hidden behind his wide framed glasses made me believe that he was more than likely caucasian like me. He is also quite tall, if I had to guess he was probably 6'2" or 6'3" (188.5 cm to 190.5 cm) tall. He looks me over from head to toe. "And who is this beauty?" He glances over at Hyungsik. "She reminds me a lot of another redhead we all know and love."

"Wow, that hadn't occurred to me at all. She has a similar situation we should discuss, but perhaps–" Hyungsik is interrupted by the exuberant man popping over to the front door of the boutique, turning the sign, and locking the door for good measure.

"There is no chance of anyone extra overhearing this discussion now." He turns to me. "By the way, we unintentionally bypassed introductions. He holds out his hand. I'm Skai Kingsley. That's not spelled S-k-y, but S-k-a-i. Just like Saeng here, I named myself after my family disowned me when they discovered I was gay."

"But, you were quite over that when you moved here to South Korea. It may have been awhile before you found your Soulmate, but your business was booming thanks to a very influential person." Saeng grins widely.

"Oh, yes. Helping her had most definitely made me an even bigger name for myself. Not to mention the fact that earning her friendship had helped me indirectly find my Soulmate, Korain." He pivots to look at me. "Sorry about that interruption. You were about to introduce yourself."

"Oh yes." I was a bit dazed by their enthusiasm and forgot in all honesty. "I'm Lily Brodin." I glance over at Hyungsik, and he nods to encourage me. "And I'm here because I need to get a new wardrobe for the job I was just hired for." I clear my throat before pulling down the collar of my shirt. "But, I will need scarves and more turtlenecks to be able to hide this."

"Oh my god! You're Gamon's Soulmate!" Saeng stares at me in shock, almost as if he was immediately starstruck.

"Um, yes, but–" I quickly cleared my throat to dislodge the nervousness that suddenly built up there. "Not just his. I'm the entire group's Soulmate."

"We need to get you back to the fitting rooms. We need to strip you down and see what we are working with." Skai suddenly announces.

He immediately takes me by the hand and starts ushering me over to the fitting room. We all stop in our tracks as we are interrupted by the brief sound of metal scraping against metal and the bell on the door chiming at the announcement of someone else's arrival. "Skai, why on Earth is the sign turned to denote we are 'closed' and the door locked?"

Of course I don't understand the beautiful petite Korean woman who just entered, but I can pretty much guess that she is the other owner of the boutique I am currently standing in. Due to her tone I'm guessing she is probably shocked by the door being locked.

Her eyes widen as she looks at me from head to toe. She notices the mark on my neck. "Let's get you back to the fitting room." Then she turns on the other three. "Saeng and Hyungsik, I know you are bisexual so you are definitely not coming back here with us. You may be happy and secure in your relationship, but that won't necessarily stop you from visually approving of her assets. I am pretty damn sure that would piss Gamon the fuck off." Then she turns to Skai. "You have come really far since I signed off part of the ownership of the boutique to you, but your speciality is still jewelry. I'll take care of her for now."

She turns to me and smiles warmly. "I'm Young Sunghee, and you are?"

Saeng answers the question for me. "She's Lily Brodin. Soulmate to all of Alluvion!"

Her eyes widened at me for a second before turning to the others. "Then it's definitely a good thing I took over. I can't imagine Juah would get too mad, but I'm not so certain about the others. I'd imagine that Minsook especially would be pretty fierce when he's angry. Jaeyeon too probably. Jiseong of course is a wild card, and has changed a lot in the past couple of years." Then she turns back to me. "Let's see what we can get you set up with."

Surprisingly it takes next to no time at all for them to help me pick a couple of outfits out that would work. Saeng even promises to make me more. "I'm a seamster as well as a sales associate. I'll get you set up with exactly what you need to layer an outfit that will work for you."

We are finally heading back to the company building, and I'm surprised when I go into the studio to see five additional faces that I don't know. I find myself gasping in surprise before apologizing to them in mangled Korean for the interruption and bowing.

"Silex, this is our Lily." I'm immediately floored by the fact that I am already meeting another quarter of the four groups that make up εlεmεnts.

I bow again. I can't say it in Korean, but I hope one of my Soulmates will translate for me. "It's very nice to meet you all."

A/N: If you have read Encoded in Our DNA in its entirety then you recognized Skai by description and name. I had to bring him back. I HAD to. He was my favorite original character after all. I also couldn't resist bringing in a representation of Jiwoo as Young Sunghee. Young appears to be another representation of the surname Jung, and Sun-Hi means good or joyful. Sung means successor or winning. Those two names kind of fit so I put them together.

Please note. I know that I could have just as easily gone for Bulgogi as her food dish, but I wanted to go for something a bit different than that. I figured when she was trying out Korean food in Chicago that Bulgogi was probably her first thought.

When editing this chapter I did a little more research into Korean miso soup, and found some discrepancies. (I didn't look at my already existing research before editing, so I didn't know the reason I paired miso soup with the Donkatsu was because it was mentioned in the article.) I settled on doenjang jjigae instead of simply calling it miso soup because that is what I discovered when I did my research. However, in the first recipe I found a commenter saying it wasn't soup, it was more of a stew, and that the recipe wasn't correct. So I moved on to another recipe, this time using the Korean phrasing rather than "miso soup" and that recipe (second one listed) is the one I based my description off of.

Resources I used for this chapter can be found in the comments section of this "paragraph."