1: Half Full, Half Empty

It’s one fine day just standing by the open window and looking upon her view, she could tell that it was going to be a warm Sunday morning. She could feel the breeze bracing her body. If she was still the person she was two days ago, she would turn all blissful and twirl around the room in her night gown. Well, she wasn’t. She despised the sun for rising, she glared at the mailman delivering her family’s mail from the window, and she hissed at the birds chirping on a nearby tree. Afraid of her neighbors experiencing her grumpiness in this early time of day, she closed her windows and drew the curtains.

She slowly saw herself in the mirror. How hideous she looked: puffy and bloodshot eyes, disheveled hair, a drool in , and her face was bloated. She never imagined herself in this state before. It’s like, she forgot how to live. What happened to her? Why is this happening to her? She is a good child, she almost never gets failing grades, she avoided fights, and she always asks forgiveness whenever she did a mistake. So why, why did she let herself drown in her own stupidity?

She glanced at herself in the mirror then laughed because she looked pathetic.

“What a sight,” she grumbled. “I look like I drank too many beers last night.”

“Knock knock,” someone shouted as the doorknob turned.

She grabbed her brush then fixed her hair. A tall young man put his hands on her shoulders.

“When I told you to knock on the door before you enter, I literally mean you knock. As in you tap your knuckles on the surface of the door to make an audible sound, you know?”

The young man rolled his eyes because his roommate was being Ms. Know-it-all again. He looked at her appearance in the mirror. To him, she looked fragile. A very rare image of his roommate. Not once in two years had he seen her like this. But instead of asking her that obvious question, he ruffled her hair.

“Hey, stop that,” she grabbed his hand. “My hair is a mess already.”

He coughed. “Give me that damn brush. I can’t even tell if this is human hair. It looks like a nest,” he to let her know that he had no intention of interrogating her. One look at her and anyone could tell what the cause is.

She met his eyes staring at her. They didn’t look away, instead, they gave each other a reassuring smile. Hers was ‘Everything’s going to be alright. I’ll tell you sooner or later.’ And his was ‘I’m going to wait. So, fix yourself and get some sunlight. Okay?’

Her roommate broke their eye-to-eye conversation first. She gave him the brush.

“What are you going to do with it?” she asked.

“Duh, I’m going to brush your hair with it, stupid,” he mocked her like one of her friends would do.

She stifled a laugh.  “That is so not the way Namjoo talks!”

“So what? She’s not here!” He hurriedly ran outside the room before she could throw a pillow at him.

*****

After fixing herself, or rather, making herself look like a human being, she ran down the stairs of the two-storey house. She went to the kitchen to make breakfast for everybody. Everybody meaning: her roommate, Taehyung; her cousin, Taeyeon; and her cousin’s boyfriend, Baekhyun. But as she reached the kitchen, she saw Taeyeon putting pancakes and scrambled eggs in four plates.

“Taeyeon unnie!” Her sudden shout made Taeyeon jump in surprise. It was a good thing she was already done putting their food on the plates.

Taeyeon didn’t even bother to look at her cousin anymore. She knew she was going to hear her complaining again.

“What now, my dearest cousin?”

“Unnie! I already told you before! I’m in charge of the cooking!” She ranted on Taeyeon disobeying her.

Instead of answering, Taeyeon sighed in despair. Her cousin was sometimes too protective of her. Oh, and too strict. Like she lives in the Joseon era.

“I’m just cooking, and serving,” Taeyeon grunted when her cousin quickly took away the food and served it in the table.

Taeyeon waited ‘til her cousin was finished putting spoon and forks on the table. She focused on her cousin’s movements, she looked at her face, then knew that she was not feeling well. This tells her why she hadn’t seen her that much these past few days because she locked herself in her room. Taeyeon was not the sympathizing type. That’s why Taeyeon is going to give her a piece of her mind.

“Park Chorong.” Taeyeon’s words were heavy as she calls her.

Her name, that’s her name. Park Chorong, 23 years old, short and cute (?), vice president of the student body and just recently, her status became single from it’s complicated from in a relationship. It’s been a few days since she heard someone call her name. Why is that? Because she felt like being stupid for once. You know, being all ‘I’m so depressed, kill me now’, ‘I have ing issues! That’s my problem! Hahaha!’, ‘He broke my heart, I’m gonna’ cry an ocean of tears!’, or ‘Life’s unfair! Why bother with men, I still have my bed you know!’

Chorong stared at her cousin, begging her to pretend that she’s alright because she is alright. She is freaking fine. Taeyeon shook her head, cleared her mind and just said, “I injured my leg, not my hands. So let me help you, okay?”

Chorong thanked her in her mind. It was Taeyeon’s indirect way of saying, ‘Stop moping. It’s not the end of the world. I’m always right here if you need me.’

That is Kim Taeyeon, 26 years old, her cool cousin who took her in when she no other places to go. Chorong will always be grateful to her. She’s family and her role model.

Taeyeon’s boyfriend, who was three years younger than his girlfriend, entered the dining room and kissed Taeyeon on the cheek. Also, he took one good look at Chorong’s expression expecting a PDA card from her like she always does on typical mornings like this. But, he encountered a nasty looking girl. He even compared her to boogers, not burgers, all over the walls of a restroom in a restaurant. You know, when you pee and then suddenly you feel a small lump on the wall which apparently was a snot from somebody else’s nose.

“Disgusting,” he happened to say when he thought of greeting her. It’s because of the comparison he thought of earlier.

He earned a smack in the head from Chorong. “You, are really insensitive.”

Taeyeon glared at Baekhyun not knowing that Chorong didn’t really mean what she said. She only said it so her fellow friend would not get suspiscious of why she looks… disgusting.

Seconds after Baekhyun, Taehyung entered the room. “What’s up, everybody!”

He was shining right there in front of them, all merry and gay, that Chorong couldn’t help but cover her eyes and grunt in displeasure. He reminded of her of the sun, the blue sky, the birds chirping, and that mailman who was always happy.

“Good morning, Mong Tae,” Taeyeon greeted him, unlike Baekhyun,