still - daughter. a jinjoo oneshot

-

I'll wrap up my bones

And leave them

Out of this home

Out on the road

-

I’ll be having dinner with Wonyoung. Don’t wait up. - Yujin, 8:00 PM

Okay. Have fun. - Minjoo, 8:01 PM

-

Minjoo’s POV

“Are you sure you have to go home immediately? It’s still so early,” the red haired girl asked, looking at you with pleading eyes while clinging onto your arm. 

"Yea, Minjoo. It's been a while since we all had dinner together," the other girl added on. She too stared at you with puppy eyes and pouty lips.

“Well, you guys are in luck. Turns out I’m free tonight,” You told them, shutting your phone and stuffing it into the pocket of your coat.

“Yay!” The two girls exclaimed, grinning victoriously after knowing that they got what they wanted. Chaewon pulled you closer to her and engulfed you in a tight hug while Hyewon continued grinning, probably thinking about the food that she will order later on.

“Alright, alright. You’re happy, I get it. But can you let go of me so we can go somewhere indoor? It’s cold out here,” You said, tapping on Chaewon's head. Upon hearing that, she quickly let go of you and smiled, embarrassed at the way she acted.  You brought your hands to your face and blew on them, rubbing them together to warm yourself.

“Let’s go to this restaurant that just opened a few blocks away! I heard that their food is really good," suggested Hyewon. As expected from the food expert. She is always updated on the newest restaurants.

Chaewon and you both nodded in unison. "Alright, let's go!" You said excitedly. The three of you then started walking towards the direction of the restaurant.

---

“Ah, that hits the spot! It feels like all the stress has been lifted off my shoulders,” You exclaimed, roughly setting the empty glass that was once filled to the bream with beer on the wooden table. The cold bitter taste still lingering in your throat, making you feel warmth all over.

“Slow down there, Joo,” Hyewon chuckled, “Don’t worry. No one’s gonna take your drink away from you.” She raised her hand at the waitress then pointed at the empty glass, signalling her to bring over more.

“Sorry,” You said sheepishly, “It’s been a while since I last drank.” You grabbed the glass and held it in your hand. You stared at it, “I miss this feeling.”

"That's why you should go out with us more next time! You always leave immediately after work. It's getting boring to have dinner with Hyewon all the time, yknow," Chaewon joked, yelping after getting a slap on the hand from the older girl.

"Hey, don't forget that I'm still your senior at your work," Hyewon reminded her. Chaewon then stuck her tongue out at her mockingly, only for Hyewon to do the same back. The both kept doing it, even pulling down their lower eyelids as they refused to back down.

"Yah, to think that both of you are my seniors at work. You guys are too childish for me to be working under. Tsk," You said, shaking your head at the sight. The both of them turned their heads at you and looked back at each other. Together, they stuck their tongue out at you instead. You bursted out in laughter, with the other two following after.

"Don't test me, Joo. That'll be a cut in your salary," threatened Chaewon, pointing a finger at you.

"Pssh, as if you dare. You care about Minjoo too much to do that," Hyewon added. Chaewon simply brought her hand down and chuckled. "You have a point there."

"So, Joo, how's it like working with the company so far? You like it?" Chaewon asked curiously.

"Yea, Chaewon isn't giving you too much workload, is she? If you like, you can always request for a change from me. I heard that Yena isn't doing well with her new secretary. What's her name, Yuri?" Hyewon suggested, this time getting a slap on the hand from Chaewon.

"Hey, I'm treating her just fine! Right, Joo?"

You laughed again. "Yes, Chaewon has been treating me fairly. I'm slowly getting comfortable," You assured Hyewon, "Besides, I'm sure Yena wouldn't want to change. Isn't it obvious that she likes Yuri?"

"You're right. Haven't you seen the way Yena just stares at Yuri while Yuri is on her computer? Yena is the problem that she's not doing well, not Yuri," told Chaewon. 

"Ahh…" Hyewon nodded, taking in the new information, "I'll make sure to remind Yena to focus on her work instead of gawking at her new secretary then."

The three of you continued chatting about your lives. The waitress then finally arrived with a bottle of beer and soju and set them on the table. Taking the bottles, Hyewon decided to show off her drink mixing skills, doing different tricks with weird names like "tsunami bomb" and "yes sir bomb". Chaewon took videos as the whole thing went down while you just laughed away at her antics. She gave each of you a glass to which you happily took and drank away.

You were at your fifth glass as Chaewon and Hyewon were bantering about who's the better looking boss amongst the both of them. You continued laughing at their shenanigans.

"Yah, let's just ask Minjoo instead. Say, who's the better looking boss, me or Chaewon?" Hyewon questioned, "You better answer this right. I don't wanna regret letting you join the company."

Chaewon added, "Yes, you better think about this properly. You don't wanna have more workload now, do you?"

As you were about to answer them, you heard a loud crash from the table across you. You heard a girl saying something along the lines of "calm down" and "you're embarrassing us". You turned around to look at the commotion, but unfortunately the view was blocked by the wall. You decided to not be a busybody and go back to the conversation until you heard someone shouting. The person was drunk as their words were slurred but you managed to understand it.

"I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE! I HATE IT! I ABSOLUTELY HATE IT! I-I DON'T WANT TO GO HOME! I HATE BEING THERE!"

"Wow, she must be going through something rough. I think she's crying too," Hyewon said, sounding concerned for the person.

"But still, you don't have to act like that in public. I feel bad for the friend who has to take care of her. She's just embarrassing the both of them in public now," Chaewon stated, "If I was her, I wouldn't come back to this restaurant again. Right, Joo?"

You didn't answer her, still distracted by the girl's words. Chaewon didn't notice and continued.

"I mean, if you have problems at home, then keep it at home. You shouldn't shout it out to the world like that," Chaewon nudged you, "Don't you agree, Joo?"

Again, you didn't answer her. Instead, you grabbed your glass and chugged down the remaining alcohol till the last drop. You roughly set it on the table and looked around the table until you found what you were looking for. You were about to reach for the new bottle of soju but Hyewon got to it first.

"Minjoo, I think you should stop. You've had enough," Hyewon advised, this time concerned for her friend.

"I'm fine, Hyewon. Just give me the bottle," You demanded.

"Are you okay, Joo? You seem a bit off," Chaewon asked. She reached out to comfort you, only for you to flinch.