“Are you ing with me?” Was all I could spit of. I laughed silently.

If she’s joking with me, well, this is the funniest joke I have ever heard. It was effective, it made me laughed. If this is real, the world is probably playing us.

But Hani still stood there, looking into my eyes like begging me to stop laughing because her words were true. My hands started shaking maybe finally accepting what was she said.

“Are you ing with me, Hani?” I asked once more.

“No.”

I sighed heavily while combing my hair using my hands. “That’s ing impossible.”

“I know.” Hani said silently. “I can’t believe it too.”

“If Seulgi and I are half sisters, and if you and Seulgi are sisters,” I put emphasis at the word sisters. “Then, we are---”

“Half sisters too.” Hani continued for me. “We shared the same mother, Irene.”

I turned to her faster than I imagined. “You mean, Boa?”

“You knew her?” Hani raises her eyebrows because of shock.

“Who in the world don’t know her? Yes, I know her.” I said. “Seulgi said some information about your mother.”

Hani run to me, hold my shoulders tightly. “You need to let go of her, Irene.” Hani looked straight to my eyes. She was begging.

My mind went black. Blank. Empty. What am I suppose to say? What am I suppose to say?

“If you wanted to know the whole truth, meet me at the 15th. I will give you the complete information you wanted to know.”

“Wait,” I walked slowly away from her. I can feel the numbness slowly creeping to my body. I close my hands, trying to stop the shaking. “I need some air.” I opened the door without thinking any further. I literally need some air to breathe. This is a news. A news I didn’t ing expect.

Of all the worst things that might happen to me, why this? The best candidate to be the person I can be with me, is now the least. And of all the reasons why, she accidentally to be my half sister. I don’t know if I should believe what Hani was talking about. Was she serious? The look in her eyes tells me so.

I can’t find any excuse to not believe everything.

“Where are you going?”

Should I believe her?

“Hey! Where are you going?”

I stopped to my tracks when I heard a familiar voice. I looked at her and her raised eyebrows welcomed me.

“Jisoo,” was all I could say.

“I called you many---” She frowned. “Are you alright?” She finally asked.

I shake my head. “No.”

She walked closer to me. She hold my chin using her two fingers and raise my face. She check me out. My eyes, my nose, my everything.

“What happened?” She cupped my face.

Suddenly, a tear fell from my eye. I didn’t know I was heated up inside, and when Jisoo saw my vulnerability and asked me that question, that’s when I lost the count. That’s when my heart explode. And will explode more.

Tears after tears follow. She tried to wash it up but my face remained wet by my tears.  

“Yo, Joohyun. Tell me what happened.” If she calls me by my real name, it’s either I’m in trouble or she’s worried about me. And I think it’s the latter.

“This is me and my hurtful feelings.” I swear, I wanted to hug her tight and tell her the truth. Maybe the truth. But I guess, this is isn’t the right time for her to know.

“Your hurtful feelings? What exactly happened, Joohyun?” She pinched my shoulders. “Look at you, you look terrible.”

“Jisoo!” I ran to her and hug her tight. Sometimes, the hardest thing to do is to do nothing.

Jisoo didn’t speak again but she hugged me back as tight as mine. This time, I just want her to listen to the wind and read the lines between us. I will tell her but in the right time. In my right time.

But first of all, I have to go to the place where I found peace. I don’t know if she’ll go there once she wakes up. One thing is for sure, I have to avoid her as much as possible. As much as I can.

*********

Seulgi

A disturbing smell was the first thing I observe when I was back to my senses. Was I? Am I really awake now? The last thing I remembered was her warmth and her smell embracing me. I was fragile and I don’t want her to see me in that position. I never wanted her to see me broken. I felt vulnerable. I felt .

She was the last person I saw and the first person I wished to see at my end.

I gently open my eyes but it close right away. The light from the room forced me to closed it. Why is it so bright? Where exactly am I?

The noises around me volume up. It was voices. Voices from the people I know. There are only two of them. The voice of someone who annoys me and someone I grew up with.

I gently move my right hand. the cloth under it, and it was soft. I am trying to figure out where exactly am I right now.

Listening to their conversation, I’m sure they still didn’t notice I’m already back to my senses.

When I smelled the air around me again, it finally hit me. I already have an idea where the hell am I and I already don’t like it. This is not the place I wished to be after that incident. I wanted to be in her side. Is she alright?

“Seulgi? Are you awake?”

I stopped myself from moving and tried to play dead again when I heard Wendy’s voice, but my older sister suddenly speaks up and it boils my blood for I don’t know the reason.  

“I guess, you are alright after all.” She said.

I smirked. I open my eyes and say, “Weeds don’t easily die. No wonder you are still alive.” Sarcasm is a will.

She laughed silently. “You know what’s funny?” She said. “I was the one who helped you but you make me the bad person here.”

“You shouldn’t help me in the first place. You already know I won’t like it.”

“Shut up both of you!” Wendy suddenly fires up. “You’re sisters yet you are always fighting.” She looks at me with the same fire in her eyes. “You must thank your sister because she helped you. If she wasn’t there, I’m pretty sure you are already sleeping underground.”

I was about to speak but she turned to Hani who stopped smirking when Wendy’s attention passed to her.

“And you!” Wendy said angrily. “Instead of calming the situation, you choose to fire up everything between the both of you.”

“You are the one who’s burning everything here.” Hani whispered back but avoiding Wendy’s gaze.

Wendy’s was going to punch her but she paused when she saw Hani shielded herself using her arms.

“Sometimes I can’t tell that you shared the same blood.” Wendy stood up. She get the tray from the table and walks back beside me.

Hani looks at Wendy and to me. I found that odd. Her gaze was odd. Silence came after.

“Don’t bother yourself, Wendy.” I decided to spoke. “It’s not your prob---” I wasn’t able to finish my sentence when a leather jacket hanging on the chair caught my attention. It was mine. I’m pretty sure it’s mine. Then, it hit me again. She was here. And I’m pretty sure, Hani did something for her to leave. If I will follow my guts, it tells me she already said the thing I didn’t want Joohyun to find out. “Where is she?” I immediately raised my eyes and meets Hani’s when I already had an idea why my jacket is here yet the person who wore it was absent. “Where is she?” I asked sternly. “What the hell did you tell her?”

Wendy was confused. She stopped on her tracks.

Hani mirrored my gaze. “She left.”

I close my fist when it started trembling, not because I was scared, but because I wanted to punch the person who was standing in front of me.

“What the did you tell her?”

And I swear to God, I wanted her face to be bloody red after I heard what she said to Joohyun.

“The truth.”