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And it’s funny how you find you enjoy your life when you're happy to be alive --- Relient K, High of 75

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2.

 

 

It was a lazy summer afternoon the day she moved next door.

 A small nine year old boy sat on the open windowsill on the first floor, a fresh page in the new notebook his mother bought, sitting in front of him. He was quite advanced for his age; writing poems and stories that puzzled adults for his intricate use of language.

He sighed, squinting as the sun beat down on him, burning his arms. He really didn’t have many friends because he was the only Korean living around the area, so the beautiful day, which most children spent playing outside was put to waste.

“What are you doing?”

The sudden high pitched Korean startled him, making him drop his pencil. He looked out the window and noticed a chubby, but tall girl who looked around his age.

Her eyes widened and she looked down to scold herself. “Shoot, I forgot I have to speak Japanese. N…ani—nani...o…sh…ite—”

“You could speak Korean. I understand it,” he said, putting the girl out of her misery. She blushed making him crack a small smile.

She cleared . “So what are you doing? It’s such a nice day out and you’re here doing homework?”

“It’s not homework, I’m writing,” he sighed, crossing his arms across his chest. Sure the girl was bigger than him, but that didn’t mean he had to be afraid of her.

The girl laughed. “Come on!” Suddenly he felt himself being pulled out of the window and dragged outside.

“Hey—wait!”

She continued to laugh, her grip tight on his wrist. “You need to learn how to have fun and explore!”

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YongHwa sighed with contentment, sipping his iced-coffee as he sat waiting for the bus. He’d been in Seoul for a school trip once, but that was more than three years ago; many things had changed since then, which meant that he easily got lost. Reaching inside his pocket, he pulled out a crumpled map that he received from GaIn that lead to a bus stop near their apartment.

He inwardly chuckled at his friend’s girlfriend. She was certainly not the type of girl he expected the way JoKwon described her. “I guess opposites do attract,” he mused to himself as the bus pulled up to the stop. Spotting a garbage can, he tossed his iced-coffee and entered the bus.

The bus was congested with people. YongHwa ventured to the back, looking for a seat. He didn’t mind standing, but if he was able to find a seat he would have taken it. He stopped near the corner of the bus and sighed realizing all the seats were taken. He grabbed on to the rail just as the bus began to move. He looked to around the bus before his eyes landed on the young woman that sat in front of him.

She was fairly pretty in her gray sweater, blue skirt that reached her knees and a simple purple headband. Her style was old fashioned but it seemed like it fit with her personality well. She had a book glued in front of her. YongHwa found himself smiling as she furrowed her eyebrows as she read.

The woman glanced up notice YongHwa looking at her. She closed the book, startling YongHwa to look away. “The book is Mastering Self-Leadership,” she said, making him look back at her. Her voice was quiet and gentle. She looked at YongHwa again and smiled softly, holding out the book.

YongHwa felt his heart skip a beat before slowly reaching for the book. It wasn't like the book intrested him, but the way the young woman spoke made him subconsciously reach for it. He felt himself become captivated by this innocent woman in front of him.

The entire ride, YongHwa and the woman held a light conversation about reading and books. YongHwa normally wouldn’t have found this type of conversation interesting, but he listened to her attentively. She seemed so passionate about it and he found her innocence endearing.

“Ah!” she exclaimed standing up as the bus stopped. “This is my stop.”

YongHwa felt reality crash right in front of him. “Oh.”

The woman smiled once more before noticing the book in his hands. “Since you seemed so interested in that book, I could give it to you if you want?”

“R-really?” he mentally cursed himself for stuttering. He cleared his throat before asking, “Are you sure?”

She nodded. “Yes, please have it. I’ve read it before.” She stepped outside the isle and bowed to YongHwa. “It was a pleasure speaking with you.”

Long after the bus dropped off the mysterious young woman, and YongHwa took her seat, he opened the book. He didn’t have an interest in the book at all really; honestly he would have rather tear his eyes off his face than read the book that was in front of him, but he was curious.

 Inside the book, in perfect scrawl were three characters. The middle character was smudged off.

“Seo…Hyun…”

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SooYoung smiled entering the small night club. It was still early in the day where people were setting up. “Hello!” she greeted out loud, the bartender looked up from the bar and grinned.

“SooYoung-ah! It’s been so long! GaIn, SooYoung’s here!” the man walked over to SooYoung and hugged the tall girl.

She laughed hugging him back. “It’s nice to see you Key! I’ve just been busy with school and all!”

Key pouted. “That’s why I keep saying to drop out! What’s school going to do for an art student like you?”

“Gee, thanks for having faith in me,” she said sarcastically, playfully shoving his shoulder. “And I can’t just drop out of school. You know what type of example I’d be setting for Sulli?” She shook her head just a short woman stepped out from the back of the club.

“Key, what did I tell you about harassing people? Get back to work.” the short woman crossed her arms across her chest and looked at the bartender with raised eyebrows.

Key bowed flamboyantly, with much exaggeration. “Fine, Oh-great GaIn, holder of my money, I’ll get back to work.” He laughed as GaIn flipped him off and ran back to his post at the bar

GaIn turned to SooYoung and immediately her face melted into a smiled. “Hey SooYoung, what brings you here? The mural you made is finished, isn’t it?”

SooYoung nodded. “Yeah but I came here to ask you about something…”

“Yeah, sure, what’s up?” The small woman led SooYoung to the back of the club and into her office. She closed the door and looked at SooYoung expectantly.

“I finally found enough money for that apartment you were selling,” SooYoung blurted out. GaIn was surprised as SooYoung pulled out a check with the exact price she was selling the apartment for. “I know it took me awhile, but after making a bunch of commissions, and odd part time jobs, I finally got it!”

She looked so happy and proud for saving all this money that GaIn almost forgot about the situation about the apartment. “Crap, JoKwon’s friends…” “SooYoung—”

“Do you know how perfect this is going to be? The apartment’s close to Sulli’s school and a bus stop.” SooYoung was so excited that she didn’t notice GaIn trying to get her attention. “And I don’t have to worry about cramped spaces. And I have more room for painting. And—”

“SOOYOUNG!” GaIn shouted startling the taller girl. She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. She knew SooYoung wasn’t going to take the news so well. “…I can’t sell you the apartment.”

The room was dead silent as soon as the words left GaIn’s mouth. She was afraid to look at SooYoung. The woman was always known for letting her emotions run wild. It was the same as when they were in high school.

“…what?” her voice was so quiet that GaIn finally got the courage to look up at her. She immediately regretted it seeing SooYoung’s dejected face.

“I-I had to let a couple of friends of JoKwon’s live there. They’re from Busan and had nowhere to go!” she felt bad and even though she was tall, after hearing bad news, SooYoung had the face of a puppy when its owner was leaving.

Out of nowhere, SooYoung suddenly grabbed GaIn by surprise. “Please GaIn! As your hoobae from high school can’t you get me and Sulli to live there?” She was starting to get hysterical which freaked GaIn a little. “I can’t live in that small apartment that smells like Chinese food all the time! It makes me hungry all the time!”

“When aren’t you hungry all the time?” GaIn thought before realizing SooYoung was starting to get desperate. “Okay,” she sighed, prying SooYoung’s arms off of her. “Since technically I promised you the apartment if you had enough money, I’ll give it to you.” SooYoung jumped up ready thank her profusely. “However!” she held a hand up to stop her. “It will have to be under the rules you let these guys, stay until they find a permanent home.”

“It’ll be fine, no problem!”

“They’re five guys, SooYoung, you realize that right?” GaIn raised an eyebrow, curious to see her reaction.

“As long as Sulli and I have a private area then I don’t care who’s living with us.”

She looked so hopeful that GaIn had to sigh. She pinched the bridge of her nose again and nodded. “Fine, I’ll speak to the guys and see what I could do.”

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“So we’re getting a bigger apartment closer to my school?” JinRi squealed with excitement just outside a convenience store still dressed in her school uniform. She was on the phone with SooYoung.

“Yeah, the only thing is we’re going to have roommates,” SooYoung laughed nervously. She wondered how JinRi was going to react to having five men as roommates.

“That’s fine. I really don’t mind living with other people.” JinRi looked at her watch and glanced around, looking for someone.

“…They’re five guys from Busan.”

JinRi blinked. “What?”

SooYoung sighed over the phone. “They’re only going to be living with us until they find a more permanent home!” She knew how her sister acted in situations like this. Now that she thought about it, SooYoung was partially freaking out. She was going to live with a bunch of guys; a bunch of guys she didn’t know.

“Unnie you didn’t…” JinRi couldn’t believe her sister. She went and agreed to have guys as roommates. “This is a disaster…” “ARG! That means I have to look nice in my own house!” “You need to fix—”

“Sulli!”

JinRi jumped at the male voice calling her by her nickname. There was only one other person who called her by her nickname.

“—I’ll talk to you later—MinHyuk!” she grinned as the tall boy ran up to her and hugged her tight. She laughed, taking in his scent. “It’s been so long…” she breathed, closing her eyes.

MinHyuk grinned, wrapping his arms around her. After a year of long distance phone calls and late night Skype chats, the couple finally reunited. “I can’t believe it’s been a year already…” The two stayed locked in an embrace for a few moments before letting go.

JinRi smiled, grabbing ahold of MinHyuk’s hand, swinging it. He blushed, gently squeezing it. “So, how do you like Seoul so far? Was it hard to find this place?” The two started walking down the street, hand in hand.

MinHyuk shook his head. “I’ve been to Seoul before because of family, so this was fine. Did you come straight from school to meet?” He glanced at her uniform.

JinRi laughed, looking up at him. “Yeah, I was too excited, since you know, it’s been awhile…”

“Sulli?”

JinRi’s eyes widened and she quickly let go of MinHyuk’s hand. “U-Unnie!”

SooYoung stood shocked at who seemed to be her sister and a man she did not know. “Who…?”

“Uh-um…” JinRi stuttered, biting her lip. She glanced at MinHyuk who smiled nervously.

“Sulli what’s going on?”

“Unnie, this is MinHyuk. He’s my boyfriend.”

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JongHyun watched as YongHwa continued to stare blissfully at nothing. MinHyuk was still out and JungShin was occupied with something else, so JongHyun was alone with the leader. Since the apartment was already pre-furnished, YongHwa was sprawled across the couch while JongHyun sat on the smaller armchair, holding his guitar.

After several minutes of JongHyun’s mindless strumming and YongHwa’s silence, JongHyun sighed, picking up a blanket and throwing it over the older man’s head. “Stop staring like that, it’s freaking me out.”

“Staring at what?” YongHwa asked innocently, shaking the blanket off. JongHyun noticed that he was clutching a book closer to his chest.

He squinted to get a better look at the book. Mastering Self-Leadership. He raised an eyebrow. YongHwa wasn’t exactly known for reading, let alone reading a self-improvement book. “What’s with the book?” JongHyun’s curiosity peeked further when YongHwa turned and blushed.

The fun loving, but stern leader he had come to know for the past four years never acted this way. It was as if he was—

“Say, JongHyun…” YongHwa shifted his position on the couch so he was sitting up. He still hadn’t let go of the book. He looked nervous and the blush on his face grew. “Have you ever, you know, fallen in love before?”

JongHyun stiffened, his blood suddenly turning cold. He clutched onto the neck of his guitar, trying to regain some sense. YongHwa tilted his head, questioning his friend’s weird behavior.  JongHyun shook his head and smiled. “Why are you asking?” JongHyun coughed uneasily. He was acting strange and he knew it. He plastered a crooked smile, trying to ease his heart. “Did you fall in love with someone while you were exploring the city?” he joked, continuing to strum on his guitar.

YongHwa blushed, holding the book closer to his chest. “Maybe…”

JongHyun stopped playing and looked at YongHwa in disbelief. “Wait, what?” The words slipped past him without even realizing it. YongHwa wasn’t the type of guy to carelessly claim he fell in love with a girl. “With who?”

YongHwa ignored JongHyun’s questions and sighed happily. “She wasn’t really my type at all, but there was something about her innocence and the way she spoke passionately about the thing she loved. And the way we hit it off. It was like we had this instant connection.”

“Hyung, do you even know her name?” JongHyun asked, setting the guitar down. YongHwa was starting to act crazy and it was actually starting to freak him out slightly.

YongHwa paused. “Well…not really…” Noticing the utter disbelief on JongHyun’s face, he shook his head. “By not really, it’s just her name is smudged off.” He opened the book and showed JongHyun the name he found inside. “The middle character is missing, so I only know her as SeoHyun.”

“And who is this ‘SeoHyun’?” JongHyun said, trying to humor him. There was no way YongHwa was in love with this girl. “How can you love some girl that didn’t even tell you her name?”

“Yah! Don’t speak ill of her!” YongHwa sighed, hugging the book to his face. “She’s beautiful and cute and innocent and—”

“Okay, I get it,” JongHyun laughed, lightly hitting YongHwa on the head. “I still don’t see how you could fall in love with this girl, but whatever.” YongHwa pouted as JongHyun pulled out his cell phone. “Try to find JungShin while I call MinHyuk. GaIn’s expecting us at her club soon.”

JongHyun sighed the moment he was alone. Even though YongHwa was the oldest, and took charge of the group most of the time, he acted like a little child with certain things. JongHyun sometimes felt that he was the “mother” when it came to music and band related things. It was tough but he had a goal and wasn’t going to stop.

Even if he wished he could be like the carefree boy that girl made him.

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SooYoung eyed the tall man who was fidgeting under her rock-hard stare. SooYoung, JinRi and MinHyuk were sitting inside a nearby café. A single pastry SooYoung purchased sat in between the young couple and the SooYoung.

JinRi sighed. The older woman always had a sister complex towards her, but JinRi never realized she would get angry at the fact that she had a boyfriend. “Unnie,” she coxed SooYoung to look at her (much to MinHyuk’s relief). “Why aren’t you saying anything?”

SooYoung leaned back in her chair, still eyeing MinHyuk. “Shouldn’t I be the one saying that? Why didn’t you tell me, Sulli?”

JinRi looked at MinHyuk who shrugged. “The circumstances were…strange.”

SooYoung’s eyes narrowed slightly, watching them interact without words. It bothered her. “How long have you two been dating?”

“A-About a year,” MinHyuk managed to speak out. SooYoung’s stare steered towards the boy. He flinched, but didn’t turn away. “I-It was all my idea. You see, I lived in Busan and when she was on a trip with her friends and I—”

“MinHyuk,” JinRi stopped him by placing her hand over his. She gave him a light squeeze and smiled at him before looking at SooYoung. “It was mutual.”

SooYoung looked at the couple questioningly. It was obvious the two were hiding something else but she decided to brush it off. “You’re twenty-one, right?” MinHyuk nodded, nervous at what she was going to say next. “Are you in school?”

“Um…no…” he said sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck. “Actually, I’m a musician, a drummer.”

SooYoung blinked. “So you mean to tell me you have no education and you probably won’t have a steady job?”

“Well, I—”

“...and you think you can provide to my precious little dongsaeng?"

“Unnie!” the sound of JinRi’s chair scrapping against the floor attracted the attention of those inside the little café. JinRi stood up, glaring at her older sister who was taken aback at the coldness of her voice. She grabbed a stunned MinHyuk by the hand and pulled him up. “We’re leaving.”

“Ah…” MinHyuk glanced at SooYoung, reaching into his pocket and throwing money on the table, before JinRi dragged him away.

SooYoung sighed, running her hand through her messy hair. She knew she shouldn’t have said anything about school since, technically, an art major wasn’t exactly a make big money maker either. The kid was incredibly sincere about his feelings towards JinRi, plus, he seemed like a nice guy. SooYoung really couldn’t find anything wrong with him.

“Wait!” SooYoung yelled, running outside the café. JinRi stopped, and spun around, her arms crossed against her chest. SooYoung jogged towards the couple and looked at MinHyuk. “I’m sorry,” she bowed at a surprised MinHyuk. She glanced at JinRi who raised an eyebrow. “To both of you. I guess it bothers me that my little sister’s dating someone.”

MinHyuk gave her a small smile. “Sorry…”

SooYoung shook her head. “Oh no, it’s fine. I hope you don’t take my words to heart. I honestly shouldn’t be talking about the whole ‘providing for others’ since I’m just a poor art student,” she laughed sheepishly.

“No! It’s fine, really!” he reassured her. “I guess I understand…” JinRi smiled at SooYoung who nodded back. While she was a little peeved that SooYoung insulted MinHyuk, JinRi was glad that she tried at least tried to make up for it. “It was…nice meeting you, SooYoung-sshi,” he bowed. “But I need to head off soon.”

“I’ll see him off, unnie,” JinRi responded grabbing a hold of MinHyuk’s hand once again. He blushed as she smiled up at him. SooYoung couldn’t help but feel jealous at the pure happiness her little sister was radiating. It reminded her about YoonA and her new boyfriend. “I’ll see you when I get home.”

She plastered a bright smile and waved as the two retreated from her vision. When they were gone, the smile slightly dropped from her face and she ruffled her hair with both hands.

“Aish! Even my little sister…”

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A/N: Sorry for the long wait! So many things came up.

I know it sometimes get confusing with the whole JinRi/Sulli thing, but the only people who call her Sulli is MinHyuk and SooYoung. Everyone else calls her JinRi (the same goes with SeoHyun/JooHyun except YongHwa is the only one that calls her SeoHyun but that's because he doesn't know her full name)

Some things from the little preview changed slightly and some things didn’t make it to this chapter (but that doesn’t mean it won’t show up in the future~)

Preview:

List of awesome: sibawangmerah, alexiejr, Scarlet_Legionnaire, randomyetlovelypairs, danisme, iamgianna, soshieblackjack, and maknae-nyoko