"Really? "

Jong Kook regains his consciousness upon hearing Jong Han's voice. 

"Mm. ", another female voice answers. 
He peeks at them under his eyeslids despite his head still aching. 

In the dim light, she can see a pale woman sitting in the loveseat with Jong Han comfortably resting in her lap. 

"You won't leave? ", Jong Han asks her. 

"I won't.", the lady answers. Upon hearing that voice, he rwalizes that it is somehow familiar. 

As he stares intently in the lady's face, his eyes almost opens wide as he slowly realizes who it is. 

Why is Song Ji Hyo in his house and why is she craddling his sister?!

"Eonnie.. ", Jong Han says sleepily. 

"Hm? "

"Can you be.. my real eonnie? "

Jong Kook is quite surprised to hear that from Jong Han. She barely feels comfortable to anyone, and seeing her comfortable in Song Ji Hyo's arms somehow makes something in his chest flutter. 

His gaze transfers to Ji Hyo. She seems to be also surprised to hear the child's question, for her eyes has gotten wider, and there is a surprised look in her face. 

Looking at that scene, he somehow figures out that like Jong Han, Ji Hyo also has no close people to lean on to. 

They are both two girls who never experienced being with girl friends before. Jong Kook feels bad about that, not only for his sister but also for Ji Hyo as well. 

"O-of course.. ", she says when she somehow recovers. 

Jong Kook somehow feels relieved with her answer, and he is thankful to her for being so considerate with his sister. 

With that thought, he falls back asleep. 

When he wakes up the next morning, he feels something damp over his forehead. A blanket is also covering him up to his shoulders. 

He pushes it off him and reaches up to his forehead, where a towel is placed. 

He gets it off and sits up. He can feel the sore all over his body, but at least the headache is gone. 

He sees the two girls in the loveseat next to the bed. 

Jong Han is sleeping comfortably over Ji Hyo, who is also fast asleep despite of the his sister's weight and the uncomfortable sitting position she is in. 

He shakes his head. "She really sleeps anywhere. ", he mumbles. 

He looks out the window and sees that the sun has not fully risen up yet. 

But he gets off the bed and lifts the sleeping Jong Han off Ji Hyo. 

Ji Hyo even stirs and holds her arms, her brows furrowing. He could have guessed that her arms are already sore because of Jong Han's weight. But she does not wake uo, though. 

Jong Kook places Jong Han on the bed and covers her with a blanket. 

He also gets another one and places it over Ji Hyo. 

How did this girl even get here?,  he wonders. 

Now she feels guilty for ignoring her in school,  and he feels in debt. 

For helping him.. 

And especially for taking care of his sister. 

He remembers how sincere she sounds while she is talking with his sister last night. 

It was so different from the annoying Song Ji Hyo that he had known. 

He shakes his head, getting the memory off for he feels kind of weird. 
He proceeds to the kitchen and begins to cook breakfast. 

"Oppa.. ", Jong Han calls when she comes out of the room and joins him in the kitchen. Her hair is still a bit messy and her eyes are puffy from sleeping. 

"Oh. You're awake now? "

She heads to him and hugs his leg, for it is only where she can reach. "Don't get sick again. "

He smiles to ensure her. "I won't. "

"Promise me. "

"Promise. ", he says, bends down and lifts her up in his arms. "Are you hungry? "

"I want to eat with Eonnie. ", she says, pointing to the room where Ji Hyo is. 

"Is that so? But i think Eonnie is waking up late though. "

Jong Han smiles. "Really? She's not a morning person? "

Jong Kook chuckles at his sister's choice of words. "Yeah, she is not. "

But at that moment, they hear a cpuple of foosteps hurrying to their direction. 

And Ji Hyo comes in the threshold, with her puffy eyes wide with concern. It immediately fades when she sees them. 

"Eonnie! ", Jong Han calls. 

Ji Hyo touches her hair as if to check if it is not messy as Jong Kook places Jong Han down a chair. 

"I must go home now. ", she says and heads towards the door. 

"Eonnie, bye! ", Jong Han yells. 

He chases after her, but she is already on the road when he gets out of the house. 

When Jong Koom comes in the cafeteria during lunch time, he joins the others in their table. 

He can hear Ji Hyo grunting as Gary gives her a light massage in the shoulder. 

"Did you fall asleep sitting to have this kind of stiffness? ", Gary asks her as she grunts. 

He meets her eyes and looks away, not knowing what to say and feeling guilty. He knows she is having that ache because of sleeping while sitting last night. 

When they are already heading out, Jong Kook grabs the hood of her hoodie before she can walk away with the others. 

"Ow! ", she snaps as he drags her to the opposite direction of where the others went. 

He lets go of her and faces her. "So you know my sister? ", he asks. 

"Mm. ", she answers with a nod. 

"Since when? "

"Since i saw you with her that day. "

He opens his mouth to say something when a realization crosses his mind. "So you're the one who's been giving her food whenever i'm not around? "

"Yes. ", she says as if it is nothing. 

But it is something for him. 

Somehow, he suddenly feels small in front of Ji Hyo. 

While he is out, trying to earn a bit of money just to ensure he has something to feed his sister, Ji Hyo is in their house, effortlessly spending money to buy food for Jong Han. 

But at the same time, he is greatful, especially when he saw how she took care of her last night. 

He looks away. "Thank you. ", he says in a low voice. 

"What? ", she asks, and when he glances at her, he sees that her brows are crossed and she is leaning closer to hear better. 

"I said thank you. ", he says, ignoring the shyness inside. 

She scoffs, as if she is trying to stop herself from chuckling. 

"Yah. ", he scolds her. 

She should not be laughing like that when it took a real effort to get those words out of his lips. 

"What? ", she asks as if daring him to argue. 

He just glares at her and looks away. 

"But Jong Kook hyung.. "

"What? "

"That man who threatens you with Jong Han.. "

He immediately feels his mood turning bad by the mention of that man. 

"Who is he? ", Ji Hyo asks. 

"Yah, Song Ji Hyo.", he starts.

"Ou?", she answers, her brows arched and her eyes bright,waiting for his answer.

"Are you a guy? Shouldn't you be calling me oppa instead of hyung?", he says and walks away, leaving her behind and ignoring her complaints. 

At dismissal time, Jong Kook immediately heads out of the school before any of the others finds him and pylls him to hang out again. 

He is almost out of he school gate when he hears his name being called. 

"JONG KOOK HYYUUUUUUNG! "

He halts, and he knows who it is before he even turns around. 

Except for Jong Han, there is only one girl who dares to call him that. 

He turns around and sees Ji Hyo, running towards him, oblivious of the stares and glares of the students she is passing. 

Looking at her, he somehow grows a sense of respect for the girl. 

It seems like her cold and smart image has banished with just a blow of wind, for agead of him runs a smiling Ji Hyo who does not even looks around to check if somebody is looking and talking about her. 

Her brunette hair is flipping back, her legs are running, moving forward one after the other in a quick manner that is suprising for someone who has been known as prim and proper for a long time. 

She stops right in front of him. 

"Are you going to Jong Han now? ", she asks as she pants. He can now see beads of sweat starting to form in the sides of her face, but she does not seem to care. 

"Ou. ", he answers. 

"Let's go. ", she says and leads the way. 

"What? Where are you going? "

"To Jong Han! ", she answers as if it is not a strange answer. 

"Why are you going there? With me?"

She halts and faces him, making him do the same. "Shall we go our separate ways when we'll eventually just meet in the end? ", she asks. 

"No. I mean, why should you go there?"

"Why do you ask too many questions? Let's just go! ", she urges and marches to the direction of his house. 

They walk silently. He does not know what to say or talk about, and apparently ,she doesn't know either. 

He has never walk with a girl before ever since he broke up with Eun Hye, and apparently, knowing that Ji Hyo never had friends before, neither did she. 

The silence just breaks when they pazses by a convenience store and Ji Hyo invires him to buy lots of food for her sister. 

Just when they are already in the counter to pay, the glass door of the store opens and a girl enters. 

They both freezes when they recognize who it is. 

**************************************************************

 

Hi to all the readers of this story! Sorry I've let you down on the updates for so long. Been so busy and the app just isn't so easy to use. But I'm here for another update so please may you continue to enjoy this fanfic. And the chaps are not yet edited so I apologize if there are many typos. 

And ccomment! Would love to hear from you guys. :)