It's now eight thirty in the morning. Wendy is lying on the sofa while reading some books about cocktails. More accurately, she's not reading but looking through them. She's sure if her mother sees her doing this, she will say something like "You think doing it is fine, but it actually hurts your eyes a lot". However, she doesn't really care about it now since her mom isn't here. 

She is in Irene's room but the elder woman isn't home — she went out to buy supplies. Wendy visits this house at times. The couple aren't living together since Wendy isn't independent of her parents.

After dawdling around the whole room, Wendy finally decided to do something else to pass the time. Thus she approached the sofa. Irene put some magazines and books on both sides of the sofa, plus she read them in her spare time to expand her knowledge of cocktails. The brunette bent down and picked up the book about tonic. 

She's free today. Economic students in their junior year at Wendy's college should be taking "Statistical Theory and Methods I" now. However, since the brunette passed the course when she was a freshman, she could save some time for other things she wanted to do. For instance, staying at Irene's home for the whole day. 

When the elder woman said her younger sister would visit them, she was curious about what Irene's sister was like again. Irene rarely talked about her family, so actually Wendy didn't know much about them. It was no big deal since Wendy also seldom talked with Irene about her elder sister and parents. Somehow, she found talking about her family was a bit embarrassing and thus she rarely did this.

"Doesn't it take three or four hours to get from Daegu to Seoul by bus?" Wendy was surprised, "So she needs to leave Daegu in the middle of the night, right?"

"Yeah, and I tried to stop her." Irene sighed, "I said we could meet in the afternoon, but that kid didn't listen to me. She told me she wanted to feel how beautiful Seoul's morning was. I asked her if she went crazy, but that message was unread."

Normally, she and Irene went shopping together when she was in Irene's place. She just thought if this mysterious woman came here, there should be someone here to welcome her. Thus she decided to stay at the apartment alone.

When she is reading the part about how stress can affect a person mentally and physically, Wendy hears someone's footsteps in the corridor. She straightens up immediately. Soon, the door is open. When Sooyoung sees the brunette, she greets her with a friendly smile instantly, "Oh, hi, Wendy ssi."

"Hi, Sooyoung ssi." Wendy returns Sooyoung's smile while waves at the black haired woman. 

But wait, did Sooyoung say "Joohyun" rather than "Unnie" just now? Wendy thinks to herself while watching the tall woman putting the spare key into one of her red coat's pockets. Sooyoung is now taking off her shoes. She's wearing a caramel shoulder bag.

Long lustrous hair, round starry eyes, dazzling eye smile. If someone asked her how she would describe Sooyoung, then she would definitely tell them these.

"You're not surprised to see me here." Wendy is trying to make conversation. She's now sitting on the sofa. She leans back while spreading her legs. 

"Oh, Joohyun said you would be here today." This time, Wendy is sure Sooyoung said "Joohyun" since she heard it clearly. She knows Sooyoung is five years old younger than Irene, and the way Sooyoung calls Irene sounds like they were at the same age. But yeah, it's common for siblings to call each other by their first name.

"Besides, she told me you became her lover as soon as you and her started dating." There is a mischievous smile on the black haired woman's face when she hangs her coat on the clothes hanger. Wendy flushes red at once and Sooyoung bursts into laughter. It seems that the tall woman enjoys seeing her reaction. And yeah, she can feel Sooyoung and Irene are alike in many ways.

They talk to each other for a while, then hear the noises caused by putting the key in the door. They both turn attention to the door. However, after a moment, the key's owner hasn't opened it yet, and Sooyoung stands up then does it instead.

Her elder sister is now standing in front of her. There are two plastic bags in her hands and one of them is on her right wrist. She sees Irene pull the key free.

"You bought what?" Sooyoung is curious, so she almost pokes her head into the bags to check the things. Different types of bread are packed in some transparent bags. Vegetables, meat and a carton of milk are also there. 

"Yah, take one of the bags first. The bags are heavy." After Sooyoung takes the plastic bag from Irene's right hand while giggles, Irene passes her sister a slice of red bean bread, "Take this. I know you haven't eaten anything yet."

"I love you Joohyun!"

"Thanks. I don't love you though." Irene says with a calm tone, but there is a glow in her cheeks.

Wendy watches the tall woman whining while walking arm in arm with her elder sister. She smiles, and starts to sort all the books into piles as Irene did. 

"Do you two want to drink something?" Irene stops in front of the kitchenette that is several steps away from the door, putting the two bags on the countertop. Her sister is standing on her right-hand side and asks for a glass of Negroni.

"Unnie," The brunette shouts since there is some distance between the living room and the kitchenette, "Unnie, I also want Negroni."

After drying her hands, Irene stores the fresh ingredients in the fridge, and then takes several boxes with cube ice from the freezer. Since there is not enough space in the kitchenette for her to organize things in the same way as she does in the bar, she just puts everything on the countertop casually instead. Lemons and oranges are placed in the same bowl. (Their peels are for decoration and their pulp is for making juice.) Empty and almost empty bottles straggle over the countertop while some jiggers are around them.

Wendy passes the dining table, and then stands beside Sooyoung. They watch Irene pouring several types of spirits into those jiggers and transferring them to a glass with cube ice. 

"Are you actually making poison?" Sooyoung asks.

"No, I'm trying to make a magic potion that can shut you up anytime." Irene says while stirring the drink with a clean bar spoon.

The black haired woman snorts, takes a bite of the bread and grimaces. Wendy blinks. She looks at Sooyoung, then looks at her lover who simply pretends she isn't paying attention to her sister. The situation brings a sudden smile to Wendy's lips.

Orange's aroma permeates the room as Irene cuts the object in half. 

The way Sooyoung and Irene bicker with each other reminds Wendy of the time she spent with her elder sister in Canada. In her early teens, one of her favorite things was doing childish things to annoy her elder sister. Until now, she still can't figure out why she loved to do it when she was younger. Maybe she felt satisfied to see her sister pay attention to her (though her sister never ignored her). 

She's also happy to see the sisters being totally relaxed around each other because it shows they are really close.

After finishing the two drinks, Irene adds two slices of orange to them. She hands Wendy the Rocks glass of Negroni first, "Wendy, here's the drink you ordered. Enjoy."

The brunette nods with a smile. She tastes her drink while watching the chaotic sisters with interest. Irene then turns her attention to her younger sister, and the latter is looking at her with puppy eyes while stretching out her right hand. Irene holds the glass with both hands and stares at Sooyoung.
 
"You?" Irene raises an eyebrow while says, "You only need poison."

"Then I'll drink the most delicious poison existing in this world." Sooyoung laughs coyly while taking the drink from her elder sister's hand.

Irene pretends she's disgusted, "It will be the last one. I can't let you walk down the street while being drunk." 

To her surprise, her sister doesn't bicker with her this time — Sooyoung just sips at the drink cheerfully. Perhaps Sooyoung is finally willing to let her have a peaceful day. After taking a shallow breath, Irene sets about rearranging the materials and bottles, and then makes a drink for herself.

The three of them stay at the kitchenette rather than go back to the living room. They stand there with drinks in their hands. They talk and laugh, until the glasses are empty. Wendy orders two other cocktails, and they continue talking until the the brunette finishes both drinks.

"Ah, Joohyun, I'll go back to Daegu now." Sooyoung says while putting the glass in the sink.  

"Wait, didn't you tell me last night that you were free today? You said the professor was sick, so the classes in this afternoon were cancelled." Irene is surprised, "Did you lie to me?"

"I just wanted to check if you grew taller so I came here." Sooyoung shrugs while spreading her hands, "But you're still short. I'm disappointed."

"Yah, Bae Sooyoung, you're so annoying!" Irene flushes crimson, "And I'm not short, you giant!"

"That's because I have an annoying sister." Sooyoung laughs coyly again, "I learned everything from you."

Seeing Irene pout, Sooyoung laughs heartily. She just enjoys the feeling of teasing her sister with her whole heart. Wendy and Irene then follow the tall woman to the door while the brunette still has the glass in her right hand. (She just forgets to put it on the countertop.) Sooyoung takes her coat from the clothes hanger and put it on. Irene's room actually has a closet, but she still put a hanger there because she loves to have it there.

"Sooyoung, visit us only when you're convenient. You could have had more time to rest." Irene touches her forehead with her left hand. Her sister sometimes really gives her a headache.

"I didn't hear anything. I didn't hear any— Thing." Sooyoung doesn't turn around to look at Irene, but her tone makes Wendy laugh. The brunette laughs so hard and thus she almost drops the Martini cup on the floor. Her laughter is infectious, so Sooyoung joins her and she almost topples over. The black haired woman then has to grab the hanger to support herself.

"Yah Wendy, why are you laughing!" Irene shouts, "And you, Sooyoung! Stop laughing! Yah!"

"Ah god." The brunette tries to catch her breath, "I'm sorry unnie. I can't help it."

Sooyoung nods while laughing. Irene tries to get the other women's attention through narrowing her eyes, but neither of them are pay attention to her. Thus she sighs and just waits them to calm themselves down instead.

When Wendy and Sooyoung finally stop laughing, the black haired woman puts on her white canvas shoes. She and Wendy wave at each other, then Sooyoung leans forward and folds her petite sister in her arms, "I have to go now. Take care of yourself, okay?"

Irene sighs, and then nods while hugging Sooyoung, "You too. Take care."

"By the way, I hope you won't poison yourself soon."

"I said I make drinks rather than poison!" 

Irene leaves the room with her sister, talking to her until the elevator door closes. When the raven haired woman enters the room again, she sees Wendy patting the place next to her.

"Joohyun, here here."

Thus Irene closes the door, and then walks across to where the brunette is at. She sits on her right-hand side, "What's up?"

Wendy only smiles. Then, she leans forward and kisses Irene on her lips. Irene's eyes widen. But within seconds, she parts her lips. Wendy grips her lover's jaw and slides her tongue in . She hears those small moans, and she tries to swallow them all. When they pause for breath, there is a glistening thread of moisture between them.

Wendy reaches out and presses Irene to her. She touches Irene's forehead with her own. Maintaining eye contact with Wendy for a while, Irene asks, "Did Sooyoung tell you something?"

"No, she didn't." Wendy says while Irene's back with her right hand.

Wendy and Sooyoung discovered mutual interest after perhaps five minutes of talking and thus the two extroverts became friends. When Sooyoung told Wendy she needed to take classes later today, the brunette asked Sooyoung why she still chose to come to Seoul.

"I've been curious about you because I always wanted to know what Joohyun's lover is like. When she told me you would also be there, I said I would visit you two." Sooyoung smiled, "It was hard for me to go to Seoul when I was in high school since I had fixed schedules. But I went to university this year, so I have more free time now."

"The other reason is, I worried if Joohyun has been overworking. We had a call several days ago." Sooyoung looked serious, "When I asked Joohyun if she was fine, she was silent. We don't hide anything from one another because we know each other so well. So, I noticed she was really tired and I came her to comfort her."

Then Wendy remembered something. Irene always messaged her saying she ate well. She enjoyed delicious food and no matter how busy she was, Irene always took time to eat proper meals. (At least after they began dating.) However, from about a week ago, even if she asked Irene if she ate, the elder woman would only send a smiley or just evaded the question. Furthermore, when she entered Irene's room earlier, she found the trash can in the living room was empty. 

When Irene was still in college, usually, after going back from the bar past midnight, she just slept and did the cleaning the next day. Therefore, when Wendy visited her the next morning, there were always something in all trash cans. Irene didn't get out of this habit after graduating from university, so it was obvious that the reason why her lover took out the trash before she came to her place was she didn't want her to find some certain things in that trash can. Maybe there were some instant noodles packages, Wendy thought.

Wendy knew there must be something wrong, but she didn't want to force Irene to talk about her struggles and that was why she didn't do anything big about it. But yeah, after talking to Sooyoung, she decided to take this a stage further since she couldn't ignore Sooyoung's concern about the situation.

"Did your parents say anything to Joohyun unnie when she decided to be a full-time bartender?"

"No. They just nodded." Sooyoung replied, "Joohyun talked to me about it first when she went back to Daegu, then she told mom and dad it after the whole family finished a meal. Joohyun showed her interest on making drinks in her early teens, so mom and dad were not surprised about this decision. Plus they know that she's been a part-time bartender for years. They let us decide everything ourselves because they trust us." 

Wendy didn't say anything. She knew she was about to find the answer thanks to Sooyoung's frankness. 

"Then why did you suddenly kiss me?" Irene looks sceptical, but there is a glow in her cheeks.

"Oh, so I can't kiss you if I don't have a certain reason?" The brunette raises an eyebrow, pretending to feel offended.