Hana stretched her arms as she walked out of the school building. Exams were over, it was finally weekend again and she didn’t have work. She couldn’t wait to get home and bum out in her pjs.

As she walked, she smiled at the fact how easily she had come to call that small, cramped place her home. Living with Jin was also more fun than Hana wanted to admit. They cooked together, studied together and went to school together. Getting him to wake up in the morning was not an easy job but as soon as he smelled food, he would be in the kitchen in no time.

Their biggest struggle had been adjusting their lifestyles to each other’s, but now after almost two weeks it felt quite natural. Surprisingly, Jin had also turned out to be a decent enough guy who gave up the bed and slept on a futon next to it. Everything—she crossed her finger—was going pretty well, besides that Jin was still having no luck finding a job even though he was really trying.

Initially, they’d been surviving on Hana’s savings and the money she made from her extra shifts, but she could tell Jin really did not like it. He borrowed money from Namjoon and had even been skipping school when there were no exams to look for a job more actively. Now, if even that would get sorted out then she would have no complaints in life.

“Hana!” Hana turned around to see Minjun running after her. He caught up with her and doubled over, panting, before he gently grabbed her shoulder. “Yah, Hana, I went to your house yesterday. Minam noona said you don’t live there anymore—what does that mean?”

Hana swallowed lightly, she hadn’t told him, Yebin and Haru yet. She had been intending to but never found the right time. Not to mention she was slightly scared of their reactions—she was most scared of Minjun’s reaction though.

“You met Unnie?” Hana hoped Minam hadn’t told him she was living with Jin because that would really cause problems. Everything was going so well right now that she didn’t want any more drama.

“She said you were living with Kim Seokjin, is that true?”

As soon as those words left his mouth, Hana winced.

“I asked if it’s true.” Minjun repeated himself, more aggressively this time.

“Oppa, I—I,” Hana stuttered, trying to find a good way to explain so it would make sense to him too, but deep down she knew there was nothing she could say to justify it. Yes, she was in desperate need of a place to stay when Jin came along but she had messed up by making a secret out of it because now it just seemed suspicious.

“Cho Hana.” Minjun gave her a stern look, “did you forget what kind of douchebags he and his friends are? Huh?”

Hana looked at the ground, feeling conflicted. She knew what they’d done to Minjun, but after getting to know some of them better, she liked them.

“If you were in a pinch why didn’t you tell me?” Minjun looked a bit hurt, “even though we’re stepsiblings I thought we were close, but it seems like I was mistaken.”

“Oppa!” Hana grabbed his hand and held it in hers, “it’s not like that, you know it’s not like that! Of course we’re close but I couldn’t ask you for help after...”

“Yah,” Minjun pushed her head back, scolding her, “that my mom left me and abeo-ji for your dad is not your fault. We were friends before that!”

“I know,” Hana pouted sadly, “but I’m always causing trouble for you—I never even apologized about the fact that because of me you also can’t play soccer anymore.”

“That’s not because of you but because of those jerks, that’s exactly why you should stay away from them!”

“I don’t have anywhere else to go,” Hana blinked away the tears. “Appa doesn’t answer my calls, Yebin has it tough living with her aunt and you and Haru live in a dormitory,” she sniffed, letting a few tears escape, “Seokjin was the only one who could help me. I know what he did to you was wrong but I really didn’t know what to do anymore...”

“Okay, okay,” Minjun pulled her in a hug and patted her head, “don’t cry. It’s my fault for not being able to take care of you. If my dad hadn’t turned into an alcoholic after Eomma left, we could have stayed with him.”

--

“I’m really sorry Oppa,” Hana apologized for the umpteenth time as Minjun placed their order on the table before sitting down.

“Yah, knock it off already,” Minjun pouted, “it’s making me feel uncomfortable. Besides, I should be the one apologizing, my sister threw you out of your own house. I understand you did what you had to do but you’re not planning to stay with him, right?”

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