I'm Back Home

Eun Kyung slipped into the house, and tiptoed up the stairs to her room. She looked behind her, careful to evade Sunggyu or her dad, knowing they would nag her and make a big fuss over what happened. She opened the door, shut it quietly, and took a deep breath.

"What are you doing back home so late?" a voice behind her asked accusingly.

She gasped and started. "Sunggyu... I can explain." she mumbled pathetically. She felt him touch her shoulder lightly, and gently turned her to face him. She could hear his sharp intake of his breath.

"Eun Kyung," he started, and she hung her head guiltily, "did you get in another fight?"

"No, I..." she fumbled for words, " I...fell down the stairs at school. I was walking down the stairs, and... I fell." she finished lamely.

"If you fell," Sunggyu's hard voice made her look up nervously into his eyes. Boy, he was pissed today. "Then why is your cheek bruised and scratched?"

"I fell on my face."

"Eun Kyung!" he hissed. She jumped, startled by his anger. "What did you do to your classmates this time?!?!"

"What?" she asked, trying for an innocent face. She failed. She didn't even feel upset that Sunggyu first blamed her instead of those cowards. She did, indeed, start the fight.

"They beat you up, didn't they? Who was it? Min Rin? Chin Hwa? Kwon Min?" he questioned.

"I fell down the stairs, oppa." she whined, but then winced. She almost never called Sunggyu "oppa" unless she was sick, or when she wanted something from him. It was obvious that she was lying now.

"You didn't fall down the stairs, Eun Kyung. Stop lying. There's no way stairs can claw half of your face, and bruise you everywhere." His tone softened as he saw her injuries. "Those jerks. They'll get what they deserve. When I'm done with them, they'll only be puddles of hot, steaming        sh--"

"Sunggyu oppa!" she cried again. "Appa will scold you if he hears you cuss."

"Don't change the subject, Eun Kyung!" he said. "Besides, they've been bullying you for far too long. I'll teach them a lesson!"

"Sunggyu oppa, no! I'll deal with them! I don't need your help!" she pouted and stomped on his foot, hard.

"Yah, Eun Kyung! Don't step on foot, these are new slippers." he mumbled. "But anyway, you're only going to get beat up again."

"I can take them, oppa!"

"Then why didn't you kick their a--ah, uh ?" he demanded.

"It was six against one!" she cried, " And two of them were guys! But I've seriously got it, I got the situation under control, oppa!" 

She glared unflinchingly at him, with watery eyes. "I don't need your help." she enunciated, like he was in Pre-K. "You would only make things worse."

Sunggyu didn't even blink. He was used to her threats and insults. He glared right back at her, even though tears were about to burst out of his small eyes.

"Fine." he whispered. "You have to think up of a believable excuse for appa by yourself, Eun Kyung. I'm not helping you like last time."

"Fine." she said back, holding back her smile. "Thanks, oppa."

Sunggyu didn't reply as he exited her room, and loped off to his own.