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ONE

___When Jongin first met the girl, he was very much surprised.

___His parents had brought her home without prior notice, suddenly announcing him that he had a cousin, and that very cousin was going to live under the same roof as him. 'Surprise !' his mother shouted, playing the joking card.

"Well, it's very like them." he thought that time.

___However, anything related to this cousin was very blur. Where she came from, why she was here or who her parents were, it was all mysteries. In fact, Jongin believed that he didn't have any relatives until she came. He never met any aunt or uncle from either side of his parents. He knew that his father was an only child, but didn't know that his mother had a younger sister and wondered why he never met her.

"Oh well." He soon waved it off. Jongin was never one to think to much of one thing. He believed that he would know when the time comes.

___He later learnt that his cousin was called Gaeun, and also learnt that she was pretty... special.

___For the first couple of weeks, he never heard her voice. At first, he thought perhaps she was shy or didn't like to talk. But soon, this thought changed, and he believed for quite a long time that she was unable to speak. He didn't dare to ask, for it might be indiscreet of him. When he shared his thoughts with his mother a while after, she looked at him incredulously, then laughed loudly for a couple of minutes before treating him of an 'idiot'. He suddenly became so embarrassed that he never asked anything about his cousin afterwards.

___If she didn't like to talk, she liked to stare at people and things very, very intensively. Quite some times, he caught her staring at him when he was watching television or playing Playstation in the living room. There was also this one time, when he found her in their house's small garden, squatted in the middle the lawn. He worried for an instant that she might feel unwell until he saw her staring at a caterpillar in the process of turning into a butterfly (he thinks). From that day on, he decided that she was definitely weird.

___Another odd fact is that she never left home. He believes that she's around his age, however she didn't seem to attend school. Perhaps she was taking lessons at home through those complicated programs, he thought. But if she did took home lessons, he has never seen her writing her homeworks, or working on her lesson at all. Usually he would see her either doing houseworks or helping his mother when she called her. What she was doing in life was an enigma.

___Along with the fact that she was a home nerd, he also found some of her actions... peculiar. There was this one day, when he came back home earlier than usual because dance practice was canceled. He found her in the living room, looking around the television and palpating all over the device.

"Are you searching how to switch it on ?"

___She seemed flustered when he asked her and turned bright pink, nodding timidly.

___He then realized that she never asked anybody for help since she came in their house and remembered the many times when she seemed to struggle in front of devices or pot of strawberry jam. Like a bulb suddenly lightening in his head, he understood maybe she really was timid to the extend that she doesn't dare to ask for help. As if he resolved an equation about exponential functions, he was proud of himself to have understood a little bit better the girl who intrigued him since the first day.

"Thank you." She said, although very quietly, when he switched on the television for her.

___It was the first time he heard her voice, and Jongin couldn't hide his shock.

"So she does know how to speak." He almost thought loudly.

___Since then, she seemed to open up to him, beginning with small greetings at first, then small questions about his school day and then long conversations whenever she could. Jongin found out that she was in reality a very bright and pure-minded kid at heart, also too curious for her own good. She always had a bunch of questions to ask, and he didn't have time to answer one that she had already asked three. He also noticed that she was actually pretty dutiful and considerate ever since he knew that she was the one preparing breakfast, so that his mother could sleep more. Since then, Jongin had developed a brother complex towards her and took care of her like his younger sister.

"But I'm older than you." She remarked when he told her his feelings.

___That, was much of a shock to Jongin.

___He had had a hard time to assimilate the new information, for he looked at her too much like a younger sister to be able to think of her as a 'noona'. Since he knew about that, he couldn't act as freely as he did before. He couldn't pat her head when she had done something good, he couldn't pinch her cheek when she would pout her lips, he couldn't jokingly when she asked an odd question. It was only a year difference, but he was too conscious about the age, and that made him very awkward.

"You know, I don't mind if you see me as your little sister, so you don't have to act so awkward. Just be what you were before."

___Jongin felt a weight leave his shoulders when she told him that.

___He had some difficulties to forget about their for a while, but soon enough, the both of them became almost like real siblings. He would occasionally pinch her cheek and she would still ask him random questions that came into her mind, they became close enough to know each other's good and bad habits, likes and dislikes, and embarrassing facts of each of them.

___It was a year after Gaeun came in their household, Jongin's mother abruptly announced that Gaeun was going to attend the same school as him. Gaeun refused at first, worried to be a bother, but was quickly convinced by his mother's philosophical speech. Gaeun was elated and Jongin was happy for her. However, he couldn't understand why his mother waited so long to enroll her in a school, so he asked when Gaeun wasn't around. His mother just smiled and said :

"Take care of her."

___Jongin didn't know what it meant at that time.

So, what do you think of this first chapter ?
It introduces Kai and his family, and shows Gaeun's character through Kai's point of view. Oh, and I'll say right away, Kai and Gaeun will be the main couple of this story, although they won't be together before a long, long while (there still a long way to go before they actually develop romantic feelings, they're now just like siblings. But whether or not they'll end up together, that is for you to find out ;)) Which is why, I'll alternate Gaeun and Jongin POV but I'll write at the third person. It's easier to understand with both of their point of view without spoiling too much of the story.

Thank you for reading this first chapter, do tell me what you think about it ! ^^
Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and since I'm on holiday, I might be able to update soon (but no promises~)
Have a nice week-end~

Waltzpring.