“You’ve got some toothpaste on the corner there,” she tells him with a wry little smile that would bring him to his knees if he were standing up.

Hwanung’s tits. Seokga grimaces, hastily wiping it away—and freezes when there’s a sharp rapping on the door.

“Seokga?” a familiar voice calls. “I need to speak with you.”

Dr. Jang. Seokga launches himself out of bed, and then abruptly stills, glancing toward Hwanin—but his brother slumbers quietly on, no hint of the yowling tomcat in sight. “Shit,” Seokga whispers. “Shit, shit, shit.” Dr. Jang cannot see that his brother has turned into a baby. “Kisa—”

But Kisa is one step ahead of him, hurrying to gather Hwanin in her arms and then practically sprinting out of the bedroom, across the sitting area, and into Hwanin’s room. The door shuts, and then locks. Seokga takes a deep breath before walking to the sitting room’s door and opening it to a smiling Dr. Jang.

If only Seokga had a camera to commemorate each and every one of Dr. Jang’s outfits on vacation. If he’d thought (or hoped) that nothing could top the rubber-duck dress, he was severely mistaken. The elderly woman stands before him clutching a humongous floral tote bag and clad in her bright pink sunglasses, a glaringly yellow bonnet riddled with daisies, along with a matching set of Hawaiian print shorts and shirt topped only in vibrancy by giant green plastic clogs riddled with holes. “Good morning, Seokga.”

A noise halfway between a wheeze and a hello escapes his mouth. He clamps it shut. Dr. Jang smiles. “May I come in?”

“Sure,” he manages to gasp out.

Dr. Jang walks primly past him, and after a moment’s hesitation takes a seat on one of the armchairs. After shutting the door, Seokga grudgingly takes the one across from her, praying that Kisa keeps Hwanin silent and hidden.

“Where’s your brother?” Dr. Jang asks. “I haven’t seen much of him recently.”

“He ate a bad clam.”

“Ah.” She smiles, pushes up her sunglasses. “Well, I wanted to check in with you about Yoo Kisa. I glimpsed the two of you yesterday, checking in to the spa. It seems like you two are getting closer—and I imagine some more complicated emotions are coming with that.”

Seokga’s heart lurches before he remembers that Hwanin hadn’t been under their care while they’d been at the spa. “I,” he replies, before remembering that Kisa is just next door and can possibly hear every word.

Dr. Jang waits as he runs through various replies in his head.

“We’re friends,” he finally settles on.