a/n: Sorry for the long absence. Busy + had a serious writer's block. 

Chapter 5 

Taeyeon hated small talks. They were typically shallow and mostly useless. Especially while eating. After a long and draining day at work, there was nothing Taeyeon wanted more than to have some quiet time to herself.

Despite all that, she found herself sitting rigidly on the dining table, eyeing the talkative Tiffany. She was amazed at the girl to say the least. The moment she was invited into the apartment, she had been rattling non-stop. It was as Tiffany had come by for dinner numerous times and was part of the family. Zero discomfort or whatsoever. From the weather to whether Obama is a good president. She was simply unstoppable. 

But that didn't seemed to be a problem for her mother, who was at this point, chatting happily to Tiffany about the latest TV drama. Her mother obviously enjoyed her company, judging how the way she piled the best cuts of the beef onto Tiffany’s plate.

Such a bootlicker. Taeyeon rolled her eyes as she watched the girl loudly declared her mother to be best cook in the world.

"Right Taeyeon?" The girl had the audacity to shift the conversation to her!

Not willing to give a response but knew she still had to because of her mother, she let out a non-committal grunt as a compromise and instead chose to focus on the “suddenly interesting” plate of stir fry meat in front of her.

"Taetae..." Her mother shot a stern look and shook head.

"TAETAE?" Taeyeon flinched at the sudden burst of exclamation slash followed by an over the top laughter from the girl. “That's such a cute name! How did you get that name?”

“None of your business.” She muttered under her breath, her patience with this entire situation obviously running dry.

“Her grandmother gave it to her when she was little. The name stuck with us ever since. “

“Ah” Tiffany nodded at the explanation. “It’s such a cute name. Makes me wish I had one too.”

Yes you have one. Chatterbox. Taeyeon chuckled at her inner thought.

Her sudden laughter caught everyone at the dining table by surprise.

“What are you laughing at?”

She cleared , suppressing her laughter and keeping them to herself. One thing though, she could not keep the image of Tiffany shaped as a chatterbox out of her head.

“Nothing.”

Tiffany narrowed her eyes but said nothing more. She was a guest in the house after all. It would not be nice to start an argument right in front of an elder. She silently stood up and started to clear the dishes.

“No Tiffany. You're our guest. Besides, you need to rest your ankle. Come on Taetae, help me clear the dishes and then you bring Tiffany home.”

Taeyeon had to groan. She hates doing the dishes or any household chores for that matter. “Umma…”

“Stop being such lazy bones.”

Tiffany watched on as Taeyeon unwillingly started clearing the bowls and utensils and dragged her lazy feet into the kitchen. Her slightly puffed out cheeks while she was rinsing the dishes demonstrated a side of Taeyeon that Tiffany had yet to see.

==

“Thanks for the meal, Mrs Kim.”

“You're welcome. Feel free to come up for dinner anytime. These days it's only this old lady eating by herself.”

“Umma…” Taeyeon frowned.

“Alright alright. It's late and both of you need rest. Taeyeon, bring Tiffany back. Drive safely.”

“Yeah Umma.” She picked her bag pack and held onto the door, letting Tiffany hobble out first.

“Have a goodnight, Mrs Kim.” Tiffany flashed her megawatt smile which Taeyeon tried not to stare at.

“Your Umma is such a good cook. I haven't had homecooked food in such a long time.”

Taeyeon simply gave a nod and stared at the lift indicator, while still letting Tiffany cling onto her right arm.

“Yah, did you even hear what I said?” Tiffany shook the arm, not happy at the respond (or the lack of) that she got.

Not wanting to give in entirely, Taeyeon let out a grunt.

It seemed to work for the flinging on her arm stopped. The pair got onto the lift in silence.

“Thanks for walking me down and for the dinner invitation. Drive home safely.”

“Ok.” Taeyeon replied before closing the front gate.

It was only then she drove a small distance that she remembered that she had forgotten something. She slapped her forehead and sped back, hoping the girl hadn't turned in yet.

She rang the bell once and waited patiently for the door to open.

Taeyeon could only blink her eyes at what awaited her at the door. A bare-faced Tiffany, decked in a full baby pink pyjamas, complete with a pink hair tie pulling up her bangs. Too much pink. Way too much.

“Y-yyeah…?” The girl was obviously caught off guard by Taeyeon's reappearance and felt a little shy and awkward. “W-why are you b-back?”

“Ah. I forgot something.” Taeyeon cleared and handed a white box to the girl. “It's an ankle wrap. You can use it. It's supposed to give your ankle better support.”

“T-thanks. You don't have to drive all the way back for this you know, you could have just pass it to me the next time you come by.”

“Not a problem.” Taeyeon examined the all pink ensemble that Tiffany had put together, suppressing a grin. “Looks like somebody's ready for bed.”

“If you had come a minute later, I would have gone to bed.”

“Well then, I'll make a move.”

“Goodnight Taeyeon.”

“Goodnight.”

=

Tiffany liked making new friends.

She smiled as she recalled the earlier events. How Taeyeon knocked on her door and awkwardly invited her up for dinner. How Taeyeon had her pale cheeks puffed out in annoyance when made to clear the dishes. How Taeyeon readily offered an arm for her to cling on while they were walking back to her mother’s apartment. She looked at the white box. She was sort of touched that Taeyeon had actually bothered to give her an ankle wrap. Tiffany attributed it to Taeyeon’s guilt towards her ankle. Taeyeon is such a complex character. A little grumpy, a little cold but still a very nice person on the inside.

Tiffany had this thought of making friends with Taeyeon right before she fell asleep.