Wang Jackson: Yes, the last time I did the interview with you guys was 3 years ago.
Heo Youngji: (she carried her 1 year-old twins and placed them on their laps) It's about 2 years for me. Children, say hi to everyone. (she waved their little hands as if saying 'hello') Ahh majayo. Please let me take this chance to apologize to everyone for the delay in the interview. Somebody thought it's the weekend and decided to sleep in. (glares at Jackson) I told him you guys were coming but he just replied, (starts re-enacting) "No, sleep is coming."
JS: Mianhe. I'll do better next time.
E: The both of you just celebrated your 2nd Anniversary together. Congratulations! So, how different is it now as compared to when both of you were newlyweds?
JS: Is there a difference?
YJ: (mute laugh appears)
JS: Yah, Heo Youngji, focus.
YJ: Ani. Eobseoyo. (continues with her mute laughing)
JS: I told you to focus.
YJ: The truth is.. nothing much has changed between the two of us. Living together back in Roommate, living as newlyweds, living with twin children... everything's pretty much the same. Except now, there are no cameras following us and instead of having 10 other roommates we have to get along with, it's just the two of us, raising our own set of twins.
JS: After getting married, it felt like coming back home. We bought the share house to remind us of where we, Jackji, began.
YJ: Living here gives us an indescribable sense of comfort. We can just sit down idly with a cup of Dutch coffee and share our stories.
JS: I would say it's therapeutic. After a hard day's at work, I come home to a table full of warm food and there's someone waiting for me, ready to listen to my problems.
E: Speaking of food, is Youngji a good cook? What's the best thing that Youngji has ever made for you?
JS: I would say she's pretty good. She cooks seafood dishes best. Plus, her version of carbonara suits my taste buds perfectly. My favorite dish? Uhm. Thornback rays from Jeolla-do which her uncle often sends us.
YJ: Well, I'm still learning. (laughs)
E: Your marriage two years ago became a hot topic. You kept claiming that you two were just best friends and that you weren't dating.
JS: It was really hard to make people believe that we were just best friends. It was really frustrating when people don't believe us.
YJ: People kept claiming that there was an undeniable attraction between the two of us but we never really had a 'some' relationship. We even said we'd never marry each other. The truth is, I was just teasing Jackson that I won't ever marry him. (mute laughs)
JS: Oh my god! So, you DID want to marry me? (suddenly laughs like a hyena)
YJ: Ugh, please. Who else was there, really?
JS: (slaps himself to regain his focus) To be honest, I thought about a married life with Youngji a lot. It was hard not to especially when our Roommate family always say we'd end up marrying each other because we keep bickering. And, whenever people say 'Wang Jackson', 'Heo Youngji' almost always comes right after. (Youngji laughs silently by his side) At first, we were just two same age friends who can't stay away from each other. But a time came when we weren't able to communicate at all due to our busy schedules and that time for me was the hardest.
YJ: Nae, nado.
JS: During that time, she got involved in a dating scandal with one of my close friend Big Byung members, Hyuk. When that news came out, I became really insecure. That's when I decided that the next time I see Youngji, I'd ask her to marry me.
YJ: (laugh soundlessly again) I was really shocked when he proposed to me out of the blue.
JS: She just stood there, looking at me. I really thought she'd turn me down. I almost crawled back to GOT7's dressing room to cry.
YJ: But I say yes.
JS: Yes, you did.
YJ: And you still cried.
JS: ...
E: Youngji-ssi, it was just a year ago when you gave birth to your twins but you've already lost all the extra fat. You look much better now.
YJ: It's easy to lose all the extra weight when you have twin babies and a husband who acts like a kid. (mute laughs)
JS: Yah. What child? Tell me which child takes care of babies, massages your aching body and pay bills.
YJ: You're a child living inside a 31 year-old body.
JS: (stares)
E: After getting married, how much has your partner changed?
JS: She's the same old Heo Youngji. She just became more mature, but still as kind as always. She always thinks of others first which showed a lot when she finally became a mother. She's like an ahjumma.
YJ: Ahjumma? AHJUMMA? Jeongmal! Yah, Wang Jackson! You didn't change either. You're still like a LITTLE BOY even after becoming a father!
JS: A LITTLE BOY? Seolma.. I AM A MAN. I'm wild and sexy!
(The babies start crying)
YJ: Aish, WANG JACKSON! You need to lower down your voice, jinjja. (stands up and coos the babies) Go and get their baby bottles.
(Jackson stands to get milk for the babies)
E: Let's continue with the interview while you're feeding the twins. What do you do during your date nights?
YJ: We would walk the dogs and take the kids out on a stroll in the evening at the park to breathe fresh air.
JS: We try lots of sports but we play basketball at the yard a lot.
E: What kind of good and bad habits does your partner have?
JS: She sleeps with her eyes open. It scares the hell out of me when I wake up in the middle of the night.
YJ: Yah, come on your snoring sounds like a bulldozer ready to demolish our house.
JS: ..
YJ: Another of his bad habit is the fact that he loves sleeping in and I always have to juggle between the kids and cooking breakfast.
JS: Nae, I'm at fault.
YJ: (laughs) Aniya, the good habit that he has is he always make me laugh whenever I'm stressed out. He never fails to make me smile.
JS: Youngji's good habit? Her uvula laugh. Seeing her laugh makes me feel there's something worth living for when things get tough.
E: I'm sure that after living with each other for 2 years, there will be fights, big or small. What are the biggest problems you've encountered while living together?
JS: That's hard. We've lived together for so long (referring to Roommate), I don't know anymore.
YJ: I really wish he'd learn to help in the household chores.
JS: Yah! I do help!
YJ: You only help when I tell you to. Or when you feel guilty because you're lazing around while I do everything.
JS: (laughs) She really does everything. Cooking, cleaning, doing the laundry..I can only really help her in taking care of the twins and dogs.
YJ: That's all he does. When I cook for breakfast, he's back in our room, struggling to get up from bed. When I cook dinner, he just prances around, singing and dancing. (mute laughs)
JS: Yah.I take care of the kids when you're busy with the chores and I always take out the trash and clean the bathroom. Come to think of it, I always do the dirty work. And, I help you with shopping.
YJ: (scratches her nape) Sometimes, I'd rather you not come with me to the grocery.
JS: Waeyo?
YJ: Whenever we're out shopping, it's like I have three toddlers with me.
JS: (starting to protest) Yah.
YJ: When he sees people offering free samples, he suddenly disappears. I have to look for him instead of looking for the items on my grocery list. When I'm not looking, he keeps on getting stuff we don't need and I always have to place them back on the shelves.
JS: Emergency food supply is important, Youngji-ah.
YJ: He doesn't know how to manage his finances. That's why if it's possible, I don't let him go shopping by himself. There have been lots of instances whereby he exceeds his credit limit when checking out from the supermarket. I really prefer to shop on my own.
JS: But you can't carry all the heavy stuff.
YJ: Of course, I can!
JS: I can't let you do that.
YJ: I'm not pregnant anymore.
JS: I still can't let you do that. Ahh, majayo. (he straightens up from his seat as if suddenly remembering something) This happens EVERY single day. Every morning, she violently pulls my blanket and screams into my ear. (starts reenacting her) "YAH, WANG JACKSON, IREONA!" I swear she wants me to go deaf someday.
YJ: It's because you won't wake up when I'm being gentle! When he's too tired or just lazy, he's really hard to rouse.
JS: I know it's hard to wake me up but you don't have to be so violent about it, Youngji-ah.
YJ: Yah! I'm not violent!
JS: Oh really? There was even a time you suddenly pulled me by my feet then dragged me off the bed!
YJ: Yah! When did I?
JS: Forget it!
E: Even after marriage, you two keep bickering. Won't you end up separating?
JS: No way!
YJ: (mute laughs) There's no way.
JS: We bicker but it's never something serious.
YJ: If we ever get really mad, we make up fast and don't let our argument go far. We may be complaining now (in this interview) but we have long accepted each other's differences.
JS: We're happy.
YJ: (laughs) Yes, we're happy.
JS: If its not Youngji,then who? I can't think of anyone else. Plus, we have beautiful baby twins! Why would we ever separate? I'd die.
YJ: Don't overreact.
JS: What's overreacting about that?
YJ: You won't die from something like that.
JS: This (points at his heart) will die.
YJ: (squeals, stomping her feet)
E: It's a shame that we have to finish this interview. Any message for each other?
JS: Don't ever change. Let's be together until our backs ache and our hair turn grey.
YJ: Thank you, Wang Jackson. Thank you, for being my best friend and my destiny. (laughs as her fingers curl up)
JS: OMG, Youngji-ah. Why so cheesy? (laughs hard