The air felt suffocating and tight--Wendy suddenly found it hard to breathe. She found it hard to even think straight, but she kept her composure anyway.

 

Ahreum…

 

Ahreum..

 

Ahreum.

 

A name that poisoned Wendy’s tongue whenever she even whispered it, a name that plagued her mind whenever she even thought of it.

 

The girl’s appearance evolved greatly; with her once straight black hair now an auburn color. She's beautiful
 

but

 

not quite as beautiful as Irene was. To Wendy, Irene was--is-- ethereal--her beauty was something Ahreum could never match.

 

Irene was deeply puzzled. She looked at the unfamiliar girl, then at Wendy.

 

‘Ahreum?’

 

“Have a seat, Irene-ssi, Seungwan-ah,” Mrs. Son’s voice saved the tense atmosphere.

 

A pair of light blue sneakers and a pair of black flats made their way to the opposite side of the table in which Mr. Son, Mrs. Son, and Ahreum sat at. There were platters and plates of food placed neatly on the table. A late dinner.

 

Wendy and Irene took their seats beside each other in awkward movements. Irene looked at the auburn haired beauty, who stared back with a smile that seemed to be hiding something.

 

“...What’s going on? Why is Ahreum here?” Wendy asked, trying not to show her discomfort. That name tasted so bitter on her tongue. Not even Seunghyun’s name had the same effect.

 

Mr. Son parted his lips to speak, but Ahreum saved him the trouble.

 

“Why do you ask, Wen-Wen? Aren’t you glad to see me?” the young woman asked.

 

Irene could see the slight glint of bitterness behind Ahreum’s eyes; deceiving the smile that etched across her face, like she had at least a thousand stories to tell.

Wendy continued to look at Ahreum expressionlessly, but the latter was obviously not intimidated and kept on smiling.

 

Ahreum’s eyes flickered towards Irene, before she directed them back at Wendy again.

 

“I asked a question and I expect it to be answered,” Wendy said in a stern voice. This was the rare side of Wendy; the Wendy who was calmly angry but not calm enough to contain her vicious tone when she talked.

 

Mrs. Son opened up to speak, but Ahreum unknowingly interrupted once again.

 

“...And I asked a question. Care to answer, Wan-ah?” Ahreum asked in English. Wendy ignored the girl and looked at her dad, then her mom.

 

“A reunion, of course. Why don’t you and Ahreum-ssi catch up on things? After all, I did force you guys to separate,” Mr. Son said and smiled. The smile sickened Wendy to her stomach. She knew that smile wasn’t genuine. She just knew.

 

“The only thing that she should know is that I only came back to clear things up; that I’m happy without your interference,” Wendy said. Her mood was spoiled. How did she go from kissing the sweet tasting lips of Irene to talking to her worst nightmares?

 

The tension between the 5 people was almost unbearable for Ms. Kim(the housekeeper). She missed the times when Mr. Dragon and Mrs. Dragon were hardly ever home. The only person she liked was the dear Wendy whom she watched grow up(until Wendy was sent away.)

 

Seunghee was too busy living up to the Dragon couples’ expectations, not having enough time to even enjoy her youth.

 

Ms. Kim, distracted by the tension, tripped over her own foot. The tray of cups she was holding up fell on top of Wendy, who was immediately drenched in cold water mixed in with juice. Irene quietly gasped as the tray dropped to the floor. Water trickled down Wendy’s face and drenched her sweater.

 

“Oh! I am deeply sorry, sir, ma’am, ma’am, ma’am, and ma’am!” Ms. Kim apologized, out of breath after saying “ma’am” 4 times.

 

Mr. Son sighed as Wendy stood up.

 

“It’s okay, Ms.Kim. It’s no big deal,” she said and walked away from the table. She paused to look back at Irene, who nodded, implying that she was staying at the table. Mr. Son and Mrs. Son usually had to go back to their business by this time.

 

Wendy turned back around and walked up the stairs, disappearing from everyone’s sight.

 

Mr. Son looked at his watch and stood up.

 

“I have matters I need to tend to. I deeply apologize, Ahreum-sii. Let’s go, honey,” he stated.

 

And so the couple walked out of the dining room and out of the house, leaving Irene and Ahreum alone. Irene never understood why the food was ever prepared. The ‘old’ couple always left in the end anyway.

 

Before Ahreum could speak, Irene interrupted.

 

“What do you want with Wendy?” Irene asked and gave the other girl a stern look. Ahreum only smiled(which pissed Irene off greatly.)

 

“Nothing. I just want to catch up on things,” Ahreum replied.

 

“Well missy why don’t you start by catching up on the latest fashion trends? Your dress is ugly,” Irene spat with her arms crossed up against her chest, hoping to tick the girl off. Ahreum’s smile remained plastered on to her face. Irene was usually shy in front of strangers, but Ahreum was different. Ahreum was Wendy’s ex.

 

Ahreum lightly chuckled.

 

“Maybe it’s not her that I want, Irene-ssi.”

 

Irene’s eyebrows furrowed up as the other girl stood up and walked around the table. Ahreum stood beside Irene, who also stood up. Ahreum was tall, but that didn’t intimidate Irene one bit.

 

“Oh? You know my name? And what could you possibly want from me, Ahreum?” Irene asked with a taunting smirk., saying "Ahreum" with great emphasis.

 

Ahreum stepped closer to Irene and a menacing smile crept up her pretty face. Ahreum raised her arm and gently traced Irene’s jaw with her index finger.

 

“You’re not a very friendly one, are you? It’s nice meeting you, Irene-ssi.” Ahreum said in a sultry voice as she leaned close to Irene’s ear.

 

“I’m Jeon Ahreum.”

 

 

-

 

    Somi really missed Wendy and she wanted to see Irene. Of course, Somi missed Seulgi too and her extremely colorful words.

 

So when she walked into the bakery to be greeted by really gorgeous women, she almost fainted. There was a certain girl whom she thought was younger than her.

 

Kim Yerim(or Squirtle, as she likes to call herself). The older girl was definitely cute and adorably small in Somi’s eyes. It was hard for her to believe Yeri was older. A 20 year old standing at 5’2 meeting a 16 year old standing at 5’6.

 

Somi smiled to herself at the thought.

 

‘How cute.’

 

-

 

    “Hey, girl? What’s your name?” A group of boys sitting at a table hollered at Seulgi, who ignored the commotion. She rolled her eyes and walked back into the kitchen, knowing full well that the boys already knew her name.

 

"Yah! You twats better not be hitting on my own daughter! I'll end you!" Seulgi could hear her mother exclaim.

 

“Yeri, it’s your turn,” Seulgi said and quickly put on an apron.

-
 

    Yeri walked out of the kitchen, only to see a group of teenage boys eyeing a clearly uncomfortable Somi, practically undressing the 16 year old with their eyes. Somi tried to walk back to the cash register, until one of the guys called out for ‘assistance’.

 

Yeri cursed under her breath at the younger girl’s ability to be so effortlessly pretty. It was the weekend, where the students got a break from school. Hormonal teenage boys were bound to end up at the shop. To make everything worse, Somi was stupidly nice and it matched her beauty perfectly.

 

Somi decided to come back to help again(Mrs. Kang did a good job of hiding herself from her.), but she decided to wear something completely revealing that day; a sleeveless graphic tee tucked into high waisted black denim shorts completed with a pair of black hi topped Converse.

 

The outfit complimented her figure perfectly. Still, Yeri decided that Somi’s choice of outfit did not give the guys the right to be eyeing her and cat calling her like that.