His sister.

(Jinki's POV)

3 years ago.

It's been two weeks since our classes started. I was still awkward around Kim Jonghyun since I couldn't help but feel guilty of what I had thought of him a few days before. He may look smug but he can be as emotional as other people, maybe even more.

On the first night of our stay here, I woke up to the sound of someone's silent sobs. There's no here other than Jonghyun and myself. Unless, Jonghyun is the one who makes those sounds.

I silently sat upright, trying to see if it's indeed Jonghyun. I peered at his side of the room. I saw his back facing towards me. And the first thing I noticed is his irregular breathing and the sobs he seem to hide with his pillow.

I began to make my way towards him, slowly. But it seems that I was really born with two left feet as I tripped over thin air. I notice him stiffen at what had happened.

Now that my presence was known, I had no choice but to speak up. "A-are you okay, J-Jonghyun-ssi? I definitely he-heard sobs c-coming from your s-side and t-thought that I s-should check up on y-you."

I hear him release a bit of a chuckle. Damn my incoherent mumbling. He must've thought I was a freak. Why did I have to stutter?

He suddenly faced me, streaks of dried tears evident on his face but he's smiling. "I'm okay, Onew. I just miss my family. And how many times do I have to tell you to just call me Jonghyun."

"Ahh yeah, kinda forgot that Jonghyun." It's still weird to call him with his first name, knowing that we aren't really that close and familiar with each other.

It became silent. It was surprisingly comforting to say the least.

"Jinki." I said, just above a whisper.

He looked at me, confused. "What?"

"It's my real name. Jinki, Lee Jinki."

"Oh." He once again smiled. "Kinda figured that your name isn't really Onew."

"And you're not the only one who misses their family." I started. "I miss mine too, so much. But then I'm here because this is for my sake, to finish my studies and to prove something to myself and to my parents. Always remember that you have me when you need to talk about some things. I know I will not be good with advices but having someone to listen to you helps a lot. You know, we could be brother-like friends."

Jonghyun remained silent, staring at his socked feet.

I instantly knew I might have screwed up. "I probably don't make any sense. Sorry. I'll be going back to sleep."

But even before I could stand up and head to my bed, Jonghyun's voice halted my movements. "I just grew so dependent towards them and I couldn’t help but miss them. I look so pathetic right now, aren't I?"

"No, you're not." Jonghyun looked at me as if searching if I was lying. But I knew that he knew I was only speaking the truth.

Jonghyun released a sigh in relief before retrieving his phone from the nightstand. He immediately pressed the lock button and the screen lit up, showing a picture of a beautiful girl smiling.

He must've noticed that I was gaping at the picture and showed me the picture. "Beautiful, isn't she?"

I felt a sense of protectiveness with his voice. This girl might be his girlfriend or something. It actually made sense since Jonghyun is a really good-looking man. "Your girlfriend's pretty."

He began to laugh at my response. I couldn't help but feel embarrassed. Is there an inside joke that I hadn't caught on?

"She's not my girlfriend, Jinki."

Eh? Then who is --

"She's my younger sister."

"Oh."

"Yeah, oh." He once again laughed. "Her name is Gwiboon and I really miss her. We're really close with each other. We have like a two year but she likes to think she's older than me by a few years. I won't argue though. Girls grow up faster than boys in terms of maturity." And he goes on ranting and blurting out random stuffs about his sister.

I didn't really hear the rest of Jonghyun's rant about his sister, his beautiful sister.

By the end of our talk, I went to bed with a smile on my face.

Kim Gwiboon, I softly whisper, drifting into sleep.

Before I knew it, I was basically in love.

"Dubu, I swear you've got to stop drooling at the sight of my sister's picture. It's just creepy." Jonghyun stated as a matter of fact, waiting for the plane to land.

This is it. We are in South Korea. We are back.

Jonghyun actually knew my admiration towards his sister a few weeks after that night. He knew he didn't read the signs wrong when I began to ask questions about Gwiboon, mumbling her name on my sleep (he even recorded it once), and stared at her picture for at least 10 minutes every time she updated her SNS accounts.

Twitter, Instagram, and even Tumblr. Name it and I knew Gwiboon's accounts. I don't have the courage to add her Facebook though, remembering that we don't even know each other in person. Adding her would make me look like a total creep. Following her through the other SNS mentioned was fine since I could still be anonymous and like her posts every now and then.

And, she already has a boyfriend in the name of Choi Minho. Damn lucky frog eyes.

"You know, I'm just excited to meet her." I pouted as he grabbed his hand-carry luggage. "I won't even make a move on her, Jjong. I know she's already taken."

Jonghyun scoffed and rolled his eyes. "And you know I don't like that Minho guy. You're better than him."

I smiled. It's the thought that counts. "Yeah, Jjong. Like that'll help a lot. Just admit that you're jealous of his height. You know that I'm always at your side, right?"

"Not funny, hyung." Jonghyun said, walking off and leaving me a few steps behind.

I laughed for a few more seconds before going after Jonghyun. As much as I want to right now, I preferred not being lost in Seoul in search for Jonghyun's house where I'll stay for 2 weeks. I may be a Korean descent but I live in Gyeonggi-do for the 21 years of my life and the 3 years in Europe. I know nothing about places in Seoul other than Gangnam.

Yeah, I'd rather tease Jonghyun later.

2015.07.05