//Minseok//

I pace back and forth in my room. 
Back and forth.
Back and forth.
The house is deadly silent. Mom and Dad went out about three hours ago; they should be due back any minute. Hopefully. 
Restlessly, I go and stand next to my open window, leaning on it. The cool breeze is soothing on my flushed cheeks, and for a moment, I can think straight as my eyelids flutter shut.
The hard, flakily painted wood of my windowsill is uncomfortable to lean on, and I push off it irritably.
I'm restless.
I need to focus.
But I can't right now. I don't know why I'm so het up - actually, I do. And the reason is just about to come through the door. I just heard the car pull up outside.
I stand in front of my full length mirror and straighten my t-shirt over my stomach. 
Breathe, Minseok.
Faintly, I can hear the jangling of keys and the sound of a door shutting loudly. Dads deep voice is easily picked out, along with Junmyeon's obnoxious one. The familiar click clack of Mom's shoes makes it easy to hear her walking into the kitchen, no doubt to put away bag after bag of expensive food. Mom and Dad think they're kinda posh, you see, and think that they need to prove that by buying foods like foie gras and in extreme situations, we've had caviar before. I almost threw up. One of the only things Jun and I agree on is that a simple traditional Korean dish would be enough to impress anyone in America, not something gross like fish eggs. 
"Minseok!" Dad inevitably calls me downstairs, and I run a shaky hand through my hair before leaving my room and going down to the kitchen. 
Jun is leaning casually against the bench, not helping, as usual. I know I will have to help, and Jun knows that too, which is why he doesn't. He eats an apple and watches me with the smuggest little smirk on his lips.
"You have a nice time shopping?" I ask conversationally, throwing fruit in the bowl on the island. 
Mom shrugs. "Yeah. Your father went to have coffee with a business friend, didn't he, Jun? We had to manage on our own."  she rubs Junmyeon's stomach, and Junmyeon humours her.
"Yes," he says, voice smooth. "But of course we managed much better on our own." 
I scoff under my breath. 
"What did you do whilst we were out?" Mom asks in return, shoving bags of pasta and noodles into the cupboard. "Study?"
I laugh. Mom doesn't think I do anything else. To be fair, it is always my excuse to get out of anything, but surely she can't be so stupid to think I actually do it?
"Sure." I agree for the sake of not arguing. Jun sniggers under his breath and mutters something about , which I kick him in the shin for as I pass him. 
It takes like half an hour to completely empty all Mom's shopping out. Jun has long got bored and disappeared off somewhere in the house. God knows where he is, he has so many hidey holes around here. 
I shuffle from one foot to the other as Mom starts throwing various sauces and packets of food around to make lunch. I bite my lip hard enough to draw blood, that's how nervous I am.
"Are you just going to stand there?" Mom's voice makes me jump. "Help me make lunch, please." 
I nod meekly and go to her side, where she hands me a knife.
"We're having homemade pizza." Mom tells me, and hands me a few peppers to cut into bitesize chunks. I start cutting slowly, knowing that if I rush I'll injure myself in my jumpy state. 
It's eerily quiet. Mom silently stirs her tomato paste in the pan, although I can see moving as she mouths the words to whatever song is in her head at the moment. Usually, I can hear Dad on the phone to someone - a business friend, mostly - but his dulcet tones are replaced by the far away tapping of keys on the computer. 
I sigh.
I wish I was still at Jongdae's. His house is so much more full of life than mine, and it just feels more like a home. 
I cut at the pepper furiously, making short work of the job and soon enough there are four freshly baked pizzas steaming on the table.
I call everyone to eat, and they traipse into the room one after another. For the first few minutes, we eat in silence; the clinking of cutlery and occasional slurp of drink being the only noises emanating from the room. This is how I prefer to eat. It means I won't say something wrong, something that could end in an argument or awkward small talk. But I know it won't last long. It never does. Dad likes to poke his nose into our lives far too much, and sometimes i wonder that if he seems to dislike me so much, why bother to care about what goes on in my life? He usually judges whatever I have to say anyway.
I see Dad sweep his gaze around the table. Here we go.
Dad sniffs. "So, Junmyeon, when are you going to bring a girl home? It's about time you started taking an interest in them." He says, and I stiffen. 
Junmyeon finishes chewing slowly before replying. "Of course. Don't worry." 
His answer obviously frustrated Dad, who seems to have expected more from his eldest son. Dad huffs, before turning to me. I swallow nervously, having not wanted the conversation to be diverted in my direction.
"What about you, Minseok? Have you got yourself a girlfriend yet?" Dad asks.
I raise an eyebrow before remembering that I never told them about Miyoung. 
I laugh internally. If only they knew the truth.
Junmyeon laughs out loud. "A girlfriend? You have got to be kidding me," he snorts, and Dad tries his hardest not to smile. Mom watches me worriedly, stabbing another piece of pizza with her fork. "Although," Junmyeon continues. "I have seen him smiling a lot at his phone. Maybe he's on the pull." Junmyeon hypothesises, and I choke.
He's seen me when I'm messaging Jongdae? And do I really smile that much? Oh dear. I feel like this convers