The car was sleek and black, and had she been in any other neighbourhood Skye knew that it would have turned heads with the silent purr of its engine. She slid in the back as fast as she could, lest the driver get out and actually open the door for her. She might have died of mortification. Even still, she sat silently, shoulders slouched in the image of childish petulance. And honestly, she was being treated like a child, shipped from one place to another. Was it so hard for them to just leave her be?

                “Miss Kim? We’ve arrived.”

                “It’s Park.” She corrected him immediately, casting a glance at the house that tickled faint stirrings in her memory. She barely heard his apology as she took a deep breath. Come on Skye, you’ve put up with worse than this before. Just go in there, talk as little as possible, and ignore the pandering new wife he’s got.

                And with this pep talk she stepped out, straightening her pale jeans and taking confident strides to the front door. It opened before she got there, and that was the first time she saw her father in thirteen years. He’d put on a little weight, but not much. His hair was almost as thick as she remembered, and she was sure his eyes actually held the same amount of hesitance as hers.

                “Haneul. You’ve grown.” He actually sounded surprised, as if he expected to see a little five year old girl with pigtails on his doorstep. 

                “Hi Dad.” Although not happy about the situation, Skye couldn’t deny that there was a faint sense of warmth at the sight of him, and the memories of when her family all lived under one roof.

                He welcomed her into the mansion, standing awkwardly by the front door as Skye surveyed his house. It was grander than she remembered, throw pillows and family photographs replaced by crystal ornaments and vibrant oil paintings.

                “Dinner will be ready in about an hour…” Her dad mumbled.

                “Do you mind if I take a look around? For old time sakes, and all that?”

                “Oh, yes, of course.”

                They both laughed a little, the pair so awkward around one another despite their familial status. He turned to walk down a different hallway, and Skye headed towards what she remembered as the stairs. A few wrong turns later, and she found them in all of their towering curving majesty. She had fallen down these stairs so many times.

                It was silent. Back in Canada her home was near the transitway so there were busses driving by almost every minute of the day. Even her apartment in Seoul had the bustle of the Gangnam streets. But here, the property was large enough that it was completely isolated from the rest of the city. She paused at a closed door, one of many, but this one held significance. She wasn’t sure what she expected to find in her old bedroom, but she seriously doubted it was still covered in big blue and yellow butterflies. 

                And it wasn’t. It was dusty old boxes and chairs covered in plastic wrapping. A quick peek at the labels showed that it wasn’t even her childhood belongings, but her father’s old court cases. Why was he still keeping all this, why wasn’t it electric? Lawyers, she’d never understand them.

                She left the room quickly, finding it more depressing than everything else put together. But she didn’t have much time to dwell on it, because a faint sound was pricking at her ears, so obvious in the silent din of this household. It was a piano, and she found that she didn’t even have the heart to search and find the source. It could be her father’s new ‘Byun’ wife for all she knew, or the ‘Byun’ brother she’d never met. Either way, she wasn’t in the mood to find out. She slid down the wall, legs sprawled out in the hallway.

                The pianist, whoever they were, was talented. They were playing slowly, fumbling on notes enough that Skye had to assume they were learning a new song. But even so, there was a fluidity in the song that hinted at a musical soul, even if the piano wasn’t their usual outlet.      

                The pianist was nervous, hence his playing. His step-father had told him that he had to come home to have dinner, which wasn’t really an unusual occasion, other than the fact that someone else would be joining them.

                Baekhyun had been a part of this family for 11 years now, and never had he met his step-sister. Honestly, he hadn’t thought she would ever come back from Canada. His step-father rarely spoke of her, but there was a sad yet wistful note in his voice whenever he did that made it clear that he missed her.

                And now she was here, somewhere in the house, and honestly, Baekhyun wasn’t prepared. He’d grown used to this family being the way it was, grown used to having his new father and this house and seeing his mother finally happy. His mother deserved this peace and happiness, but how would she react to her husband’s biological daughter from his previous marriage eating at their dinner table? 

                It just sounded messy.

                Baekhyun would do everything he could to smooth the transition, because he figured it wouldn’t be easy for the daughter either. He sighed, closing the lid of the piano, knowing that dinner would be about ready.

                He was the last one to the table, and hurriedly took his seat, offering apologies to everyone for being late. After the nods and smiles to dismiss his apology, an awkward silence fell over the table as everyone picked at their food.

                Baekhyun cleared his throat, looking at the girl sat opposite him. She was a stunner, that was for sure. Her lustrous red hair fell neatly over her shoulders, skin milky smooth and lips a soft pink. And when she lifted her eyes he saw they were a beautiful bottle blue. “So,” he began, “Haneul was it? How was the move?”

                She swallowed her mouthful, patting her lips with a napkin before speaking. “It went well. I’m still getting used to being back here, but so far nothing’s gone amiss. Dad was also gracious enough to arrange my housing before I arrived, so I’ve been very fortunate.”

                Baekhyun was a little taken aback, he wasn’t expecting her to be so… reserved? His parents seemed pleased with the answer, his father even looking a little relieved. But Baekhyun felt that something was off, every word seemed carefully planned, every motion calculated, and it made him curious about her.

                She was… polite. He felt actually uncultured eating at the same table as her, and found himself watching her utensils like they were some kind of art form.

                “So what are you studying?” He asked, trying to start another conversation.

                “Journalism.” She replied, looking at him, “and yourself?”

                “Musical and Performance Arts.” He said, “so what made you choose journalism?” He turned the conversation back on her, curious to dig past this outer shell she had.

                Skye was not so intent on continuing the conversation, but she could see the expectance practically radiating off her father and his wife, and put down her utensils to answer him. “I believe that having a voice is one of the most important things in this world, and there are many without that privilege. If I can relieve just a portion of this world’s silence, then is that not a noble cause to dedicate my life to?”

                The table was silent, the married couple sharing nervous glances at the way the conversation was turning, but Baekhyun was undeterred. Surprised, sure. Taken aback, definitely. But intrigued in feeling that he’d only just gotten his first glimpse of the girl behind the blue eyes. “So why come all the way to Korea?” He pressed, getting a chastising nudge from his mother.

                “Baekhyun! Leave poor Haneul alone, she came to have dinner with her family, not to be interrogated.”

                Skye smiled warmly at the woman, “it’s no problem, I enjoy speaking about my passion. As for why I came to Korea,” she turned back to Baekhyun, “I feel like staying in one place for my whole life limits my abilities to connect to other people. I want to experience everything, because you never know where the world will take you.”  

                The conversation was taken by the parents then, turned to lighter meaningless discussions, so Baekhyun had no further opportunity to make Skye revealed anything else, and she reverted to responding only to the limit of what was required, and then she was leaving. Baekhyun felt more confused than ever, but even more so when her car was driving away and he looked to his step-father, seeing the lingering look of unsaid words and hesitation buried there.