Legend

Bold - English translation

Underlined - Spoken in Korean

Italicized - POV Inner thoughts

 

Y/N’s POV

It was an early Sunday morning. The sun has just risen, sending brightening rays through the glass window. The clouds were white and fluffy as they encompassed a wide, blue sky. The streets appeared deserted and silent as everyone caught up on some rest.

It was indeed a beautiful day.

But I wasn’t having any of it.

Tearing myself away from the window, I stalked towards the kitchen with a task I briefly left behind.

Grumbling, I crouched down to empty our fridge of empty and half – eaten cartons of Chinese, Korean and other kinds of take – out. There were a lot. So many that some of them were already spoiled.

I opened a carton of half – empty Chinese fried rice, took a whiff and almost gagged.

Ugh. Panis na ‘to. Sayang. (It’s spoiled as well. What a waste.)

Sighing, I piled it among the rotten food I’ve dug up then turned to check the other items inside the fridge, making sure they didn’t get spoiled as well. Seeing that everything as was intact, I took the perishables to throw them to the trash when another horrifying sight shocked me.

The trash was a mess.

It was overflowing with all sorts, from used toilet paper, plastic spoons and cups, to other feminine essentials, with some even littering the floor!

Apparently, no one thought to clean it up.

With my dismay mounting by the second, I grabbed another black plastic bag by the cupboard and started cleaning up all the mess, taking care not to miss even one. By the time I was done, I was getting antsy, my neat – freak senses tingling, so I decided to do a quick inspection of the house.

Making a mental map, I started with the kitchen area. Gently, I ran my fingers over the countertop and immediately caught dust. Then, proceeding to the dining table I did the same and caught even more dust. Wrinkling my nose in disgust, I wiped my hands clean on my pajamas and made a quick mental note.

Kitchen is a no – no.

Next, I checked the living room and was welcomed by even uglier sights. A pile of freshly laundered clothes was on the floor, still in plastic and still not placed in our respective cabinets. Pillows, were haphazardly placed on top of the couches, which were in turn littered with empty food wrappers. Magazines were piled up clumsily under the coffee table. And the coffee table? Ha! It didn’t fail to disappoint me too, as it was coated in a healthy amount of dust and was strewn with empty mugs. I added another entry to my mental note.

Living room is definitely a no – no!

Following my mental map, I sauntered over to the bathroom, hoping against hope that it was at least clean but I oh no, things only seemed to get messier as I opened the door and the most cluttered sight greeted me.

It looked like a tornado devastated it.

Bath towels were clumsily hung on the wall racks, still wet and sloppily dripping water on the floor. The mirror was foggy and filled with fingerprints. Empty toilet paper rolls filled the tiny trash bin near the toilet and littered the floor. And as I moved towards the shower stall, soap suds covered walls and floor.

I lived in a dump.

Rubbing my face in bafflement, I thought in consternation.

Jusko po. Nakakahiya. Puro babae kami rito tapos and dumi – dumi ng bahay! Kababae naming tao tapos hindi kami marunong maglinis! Ano nalang kaya ang sasabihin ni Mama kapag nakita niya ito ngayon?! (Oh my god. This is embarrassing. We’re women and the house is a mess! We’re freaking women and we don’t even know how to clean! What would my Mama say?)

I could picture her out now, hands on her hips and her eyebrows raised imperiously, commanding in that booming voice of hers, just as she always did when she caught the room being messy.

“Aba Ineng, kababae mong tao tapos ang dumi ng silid mo! Hala sige maglipit ka kundi makakatikim ka ng palo sa akin! Umayos ka ha. Nakakahiya!” (My dear girl, you’re a girl and you have such a messy room! Clean this up right now or else you’re going to get it from me! Get your act together. This is embarrassing!)

Nope. This totally won’t do.

Drawing a determined breath, I quickly formed a plan and stalked towards our room to wake my unnis.

This was our house. And we were going to clean it together.

I opened the door slowly tiptoeing in, saw the deeply slumbering forms of my unnis and at once felt slightly guilty, as I recalled last night’s events.

The party had gotten into full swing. As a result, my unnis had a little too much to drink except for me (who wasn’t much of a heavy drinker. I only had 1 glass of wine.), with Feng Jiu – unni consuming the most wine. She was a surprisingly heavy drinker! In the end, we wound up having to be driven home by Jin – oppa, RM – oppa and Jungkook. When we arrived by the dorm’s doorway, I profusely apologized to them for the trouble but they just waved me off, said it was fine and bid us goodbye.

Bringing myself to the present, I cupped my jaw and deliberated on my decision.

Should I or shouldn’t I?

If I don’t do it now then we’ll never get to clean the house! They’ll just keep on making excuses from doing the task!

But they’re still hungover.

They’ll get over it! The house needs to get cleaned, pronto! We can’t live in a dump! Besides we need to be disciplined enough to clean the house now and then. Do it Y/N!

Okay, okay. Fine!

Having made my decision, I went to wake up Haru – unni first who was the closest to the door.

“Haru – unni. Wake up.” I nudged her gently.

“Mphhm.” She moaned.

“Unniiii.”

“Ughh.” She murmured again, squirming to her right.

Exasperated, I moved over to Somi – unni.

“Unni. Please wake – up. We need to clean the house.” I poked her shoulder.

No response.

I poked her shoulder harder. “Unniii.”

“I don’t wanna.” She grumbled as she covered her face with a pillow.

Grunting in annoyance I finally walked over to Feng Jiu – unni.

“Unni. Please get up. The house is a mess.” I pleaded her as I patted her leg.

Nothing.

“Uniiiiiiii.” I said louder, patting her head harder.

She swatted my arm away in annoyance.

“Maknaeeee – ya. Please let me sleep. My head hurts.” She whined as she turned her body inwards into the bed.

Frustrated, I scurried to the center of the room where I was sure what I was about to do next would be heard loud and clear.

Ayaw niyong magising ha?Sige tikman niyo ang galit ng Boss Maknae! (You don’t want to wake up? Fine have a taste of the Boss Maknae’s wrath!)

Steeling my nerves, I put two fingers in my mouth and blew out the shrillest, loudest whistle I could muster.

As if poured by ice cold water, my unnis abruptly got up in bed, waving their arms out as they were awakened by the sudden high – pitched sound. Then, gathering their wits, they turned their eyes to me realization dawning in, and sent me glares of irritation and I sent an even bigger glare to them.

“Maknae, what the hell? It’s 7am on a Sunday morning!” Feng – Jiu exclaimed in outrage as she glanced on the clock mounted on the wall.

“Yeah Maknae. We should sleep in. We had a rough night.” Somi – unni whimpered as she hugged her pillow to her chest.

“Maknaee, you’re so mean!” Haru – unni complained as she flapped around her duvet.

I crossed my arms, assuming an imperious stance and fixing a scolding gaze.

“Unnis do you not see the current state of our house?”

“What state?” Haru – unni asked with a wail.

“This state!” I stretched my arms out to indicate the pile of clothes, shoes and other personal belongings scattered around the room.

“Oh this. We’ll clean up later.” Somi – unni said with a yawn as she laid back down.

“Yeah right. Later. And that later turns into never!” I retorted with a snort.

“Seriously Maknae, what do you expect us to do? We’re hungover as hell.” Feng – Jiu unni countered.

“I expect you guys to help me clean the house. It’s even messier outside and I can’t do it alone! As for your hungover, it’s nothing a little warming up and exercise won’t fix.”

My unnis looked dubiously at each other.

I sighed deeply.

Guess it’s time to use the guilt card.

“Please guys, I need your help. I did a check – up and the house is truly a mess. It’s practically a dump! You don’t want to live in a dump, do you?” I asked them meaningfully.

Somi – unni sat up and they gave each other meaningful looks again, then slowly shook their heads.

“Good. You also don’t want to be known as the only messy women around right?”

Again, they shook their heads.

“Great! We’re going to be idols soon and we have to have a good image. That includes cleanliness in our own house! Yay for clean idols, yeah?” I said with a cheer and raised my arms up.

Chuckling amongst each other, my unnis finally nodded in agreement and copied my cheer.

“Yay for clean idols!”

“Yay for clean idols!”

“Yay for clean idols!”

“Assa! Alright for the cleaning assignments. Do you guys mind if I do the delegating of the task?” I asked them.

A chorus of no’s was heard.

“Okay. Then Haru – unni you’ll be in the living room.” I shot unni a steady gaze.

“Copy that!” She replied with a cheery salute.

“Feng Jiu – unni the bathroom is yours.” I informed her with a wink.

“No problem. I can handle that.” She said with a smug smile.

“Somi – unni you’ll be cleaning the bedroom.” I gave her rock and roll gesture.

“With pleasure!” She responded with a flourish.

With a satisfied smile, I gave a commanding salute to my unnis. “Okay team. Let’s get cleaning!”

“Yes!” Haru – unni yelled with a salute.

“Boss!” Feng Jiu – unni screamed with a salute.

“Maknae!” Somi – unni screeched with a salute.

My unnis quickly got out of bed and we all scrambled to the broom closet beside the bathroom that contained all the cleaning materials. I gave some bleach, rubber gloves and a cleaning brush to Feng Jiu – unni. Somi – unni got a broom and a dustpan. A rag, a bottle of cleaning solution spray and a mop was given to Haru – unni. And I took a feather duster and a rag and broom as well. Then, nodding our heads together we set off to our assigned areas.

I went to the kitchen, quickly got the trash, and carried it outside the dorm to be collected by the garbage truck then went inside again to start cleaning. I took the feather duster, climbed the counter and started the dusting the cupboards up top. Behind me, Haru – unni was in the living room and was diligently segregating our freshly laundered clothes according to whose was which.

“You know, Y/N I never really took you for the neat – freak type.” Haru – unni called out after a few moments of silence.

“Blame my Mama. She put me through all of this. Even just a small clutter would earn me a slipper slap from her. She’s such a neat freak.” I chuckled in remembrance.

“Slipper slap?” Haru – unni’s voice grew louder until she stopped by the kitchen on her way to the bedroom, carrying the pile of segregated clothes.

Carefully turning toward her, making sure I don’t fall, I shot her a mischievous smile.

“Yeah slipper slap. It’s the closest translation I could get. You see in the Philippines, when children are naughty they get slapped with tsinelas or slippers as punishment. That’s what my Mama used to do with me, so I guess being overly neat got to me. I’m sorry if I was mean to you guys earlier.”

She nodded her head in understanding, as a smile bloomed in her face. “Ahh. Tsinelas? Slippers?”

“Yes. Tsinelas. Ooh you’re pronunciation is pretty good unni!” I complimented her.

“Thanks! Also about earlier, don’t worry about it. We understand it now. You only did it for everyone’s sake. I also don’t want to live in a cluttered house. I was just so lazy to clean that’s why. I’m sorry too.” She said with an apologetic smile.

“No problem. Hey, at least we got started cleaning! Pretty soon the house will be good as new.”

“True. Well, I got to take these to the room now. I still have to wipe and sweep the living room.” She said with a wink and walked to the bedroom.

I turned back to dusting the cupboard and moments later after checking that no mote was left, I proceeded with wiping the countertop clean. I was half – way through when Feng Jiu – unni zipped to by the kitchen to deposit the bathroom trash into the now emptied trash bin.

“Whoops! Just passing through maknae! I still have to clean the suds!” She said in rush, as she came and went, her burgundy hair flying behind her.

Giggling, I finished wiping the countertops, turned to the dining table then proceeded on sweeping the floor. Moments later, Somi – unni popped into the kitchen holding up a cat plushie.

“Maknae – yaa! Where do you want me to put this?”

“Just put it on top of my bureau please.” I requested her as I stopped sweeping.

“Okay!” She said with a chirp and hurried back to the room.

Shaking my head in amusement at my unnis transformative cheeriness, I continued sweeping until I was confident that there were no more specks of dirt on the floor. Surveying the kitchen and dining area, my face lit up in a proud smile, as I saw that my meticulous cleaning paid off. The floors and countertops sparkled anew. The trash was neatly arranged and was no longer overflowing.

It was pristine.

Ayos! (Nice!)

Satisfied that the kitchen was clean enough, I went to the living room to check up on Haru – unni and caught her just finishing mopping the floor.

The living room looked glorious.

The pillows were already neatly and fluffily arranged together. The magazines were properly stacked under the coffee table. And the surface of the table was clutter – free and clear. Catching unni’s eye, I gave her a two – thumbs up and she shot me an okay sign. I stopped by Somi – unni next and boy was the room an improvement from earlier.

I circled the room as she put the last articles of clothing into the bureau.

There were no more clothes scattered around the room. The beddings were neatly folded and the pillows were plumped to perfection. Even the floor glittered in cleanliness.

It was spotless.

I gave unni a wink of approval and she shot back a winning smile.

I left the room and proceeded to the last area, the bathroom.

If earlier it looked as if a tornado destroyed it, now it looked as though a giant vacuum had all the devastation out and nothing had happened.

The wet towels were no longer hanging but were instead drying at the balcony outside. The trash bin was emptied out. No empty toilet paper rolls could be seen around. The mirror was wiped clean and as I peered into it, I could clearly see every pore on my face. Then as I neared the shower stall, Feng Jiu – unni has just finished washing off the soap suds so everything was shiny clean.

It was immaculate.

I glanced to Feng Jiu – unni who was looking at me expectantly then raised my fist in the air in approval. She gave me a grin and a pleased nod in response.

I exited the bathroom and proceeded to the living room to sit and catch my breath. Minutes later, my unnis joined me one by one on the couch, exhausted but pleased with the now spotless dorm.

“Whew. I don’t know about you guys, but that was oddly satisfying.” Feng Jiu – unni commented, twirling a strand of her hair.

“True. Now that I see the house so clean, I feel so at ease.” Somi – unni added, wiping away a drop of sweat from her brow.

“See? I told yaaa.” I sang to the two of them with a teasing grin on my face.

“I’m just glad that it’s done because I am hungry. What’s for breakfast?” Haru – unni queried with a curious expression.

Uh – oh.

I bit my lip, afraid of what my unnis would say, as I explained to them.

“Um unni, I didn’t really cook anything yet. I was too preoccupied with the house that I kind of forgot. Sorry. Do you mind having cereal for breakfast?”

My unnis gave disappointed sighs and looked a bit sad and I instantly felt bad.

Think Y/N, think! How do I make up to them?

Then it hit me.

“But wait unnis, I can make up for it during lunch and dinner! Are you sure you’ll eat anything I cook?” I asked in clarification.

Mystified, they shared blank looks then nodded at me.

“Alright! Then prepare your stomachs because I’ll be preparing something tasty!” I said with glee.

Feeling my contagious enthusiasm, they let out cheers of their own as well. Then we stood up, went to the kitchen and had a simple breakfast of cereal and milk.

I finished quickly, washed my bowl then checked the fridge for the ingredients I would need. There were the usual pork and chicken but no beef. The usual spices like garlic and onions were available as well. I braced myself against the fridge door to rummage deeper inside.

“Sooo what happened last night with Jungkook? You two seemed buddy – buddy then.” Somi – unni chirped meaningfully making me lose my grip on the door and fall face first in the fridge.

“H – How did you know about that?” I sputtered while clambering out into a squatting position, to my unnis amusement.

“Oh please. We’re not blind, maknae. We saw you two talking on the balcony. And when you went out you exuded such a friendly atmosphere. So spill.” Feng Jiu – unni urged.

“Well, long story short I thanked him for his concern, he apologized to me, I accepted, he asked to be my friend, I accepted again then we fistbumped to seal the deal.” I explained as I rummaged deeper into the fridge and came up with nothing else. Rising up, I checked the cupboard and only came upon some salt, sugar and peanut butter.

Oh well. I guess I need to go grocery shopping then.

Hastily, I made a mental note of things to buy when Haru – unni piped up behind me.

“Wait, that’s it?”

I swiveled to her. “Yup. Although he did make some jokes. He’s quite funny when he’s not being an .”

“Wahh. International playboy indeed. So do you like him now?” Somi – unni squealed.

“W – What? We just became friends for crying out loud! Plus I don’t like him in that way.” I retorted

“Aww. Poor Jungkook. That’s too bad though. You look good together.” Haru – unni sighed dreamily.

Wow ha. Ano toh set – upan lang? Retohan lang? Iba din tong mga unni ko ha! (Wow! What’s this setting up a date? My unnis are on a whole other level!)

I threw my hands up in annoyance. “Alright guys. That’s enough. I don’t have time to date nor do I have any interest in it. Never have, never will.”

“Ooh. Don’t say never, my dear inexperienced maknae. One day, the right man will come and you’ll wish you ate your words.” Feng Jiu – unni warned meaningfully and wiggled her eyebrows.

I rolled my eyes and scoffed. “Yeah well whatever you say unni. I know it won’t happen. In the meantime, I’ve got some grocery shopping to do. I don’t have most of the ingredients I need.”

I sauntered to the bathroom to shower and Feng Jiu – unni called out to me. “Avoiding the subject are we? Well don’t say I didn’t warn you!”

Turning, I gave her a playful smirk then turned to Haru – unni. “Unni wanna come with me? Maybe there’s some things you want to buy as well, you know for your baking needs.”

“Ooh. That’s right! I’ve been wanting to look at some cookie cutters. Wait for me maknae!” Haru – uni replied as she hastily finished her breakfast.

Laughing, I continued towards the bathroom. “I’ll shower first unni then you can go next.”

Approximately 20 minutes later, we were walking towards the closest grocery store which was about 3 blocks away from our dorm. Heading up the steps, we entered the store and went our separate ways to go find what we needed. I passed by racks of canned goods, stacks of produce and meat and came up with nothing.

They weren’t fresh enough.

I was waiting near the cash register when Haru – unni walked towards me with nothing in tow as well.

“Nothing as well?”

“Nothing. They didn’t have the cookie cutter designs I wanted.”

I sighed in defeat.

“What are we supposed to do know? We don’t really know any other places to shop for food in the area.” Haru – unni said with concern.

I thought for a bit then got an idea.

Oo nga noh! Bakit di ko naisip agad yon? (Of course! Why didn’t I think of that sooner?)

Grabbing my phone from my hoodie pocket, I hurriedly dialed a number while unni shot me a confused look. I winked at her in response as a familiar confident voice answered.

“Yeoboseyo, Worldwide Handsome – imnida.”

“Yeoboseyo Jin – oppa!”

 

Jungkook’s POV

It was a perfect Sunday morning to chill and relax. The sky was blue, the sun was shining and our schedule was empty. So it was in everyone’s agreement to just lounge around the couch and watch a movie. Well everyone that is except Jin – hyung. The opening credits to Olympus Has Fallen has just started rolling when his yammering complaints began.

“Yah! Are you just going to sit there and watch a movie? We’ve got some cleaning to do!”

“Hyung, you know me. I never clean.” Suga – hyung replied in his usual chill swag.

“I know! I was talking to the others. Yadeul – a! You could’ve just piled the streamers, balloons and party decors properly. Now, the trash is overflowing! Not to mention, empty wine bottles are scattered around. Are we living in the dumpsite now?” Jin – hyung continued on his exasperated tirade.

We just gave nonchalant shrugs in response as we focused on the opening scene being shown on screen.

Suddenly, a blur appeared in front of us blocking the tv from our sight. It was Jin – hyung and he looked furious.

“Hyung!” Jimin – hyung complained.

“Ah jinja!” J – Hope – hyung whined.

“Not cool, hyung.” I grumbled as I tried to sneak a peek on the movie but Hyung’s long arms and legs blocked my view.

“Don’t ‘Hyung!’ and ‘Ah jinja!’ me! I’m dead serious. I always do the cleaning alone. Today, all of you are doing it with me.” He finished imperiously.

Then he shot me and V – hyung an icy glare. “You two, this was your idea so I’m assigning you to trash duty. Arasso?”

Uh – oh. Jin eomma was serious.

V – hyung and I glanced at each other and nodded morosely as we ventured to do our task. Meanwhile, Jin – hyung was still in full eomma mode since he could still be heard barking in the background. “As for the rest of you, you’re cleaning too! As the eldest, I’ll be making sure every spot is absolutely clean.” The sound of tv being turned off was heard and the remaining members whined in complaint.

“No whining. You sound like babies. Jiminie you mop. Hobi you wipe the windows, tables and countertops. Namjoon you sweep and vacuum. And Yoongi you clean the bathroom. I’ll be doing the bedrooms. Arasso?” He commanded yet again.

“Ne.” A chorus of defeated voices echoed back.

V – hyung and I chuckled as we continued on doing our task.

I was gathering the party paraphernalia while V – hyung arranged the empty wine bottles in a pile in companionable silence.

“So are you courting Y/N now? V – hyung asked out of the blue causing me to drop the pile I was about to arrange.

I turned to him in bafflement.

What the hell brought this on?

“W – What? Of course not! I just asked to be her friend! Plus she’s my Noona!”

“Hmm. With the way you were laughing with her last night, I would’ve thought you were flirting with her.” V – hyung jibed.

“I wasn’t! I accidentally slipped up and it made her laugh.” I replied in defense.

“Uh – huh. I see you International Playboy. Anyway, what did she say? Did she accept?”

I scratched my head, feeling shy all of a sudden as I reminisced about the events that transpired last night. “Yeah she did. I mean I did apologize to her for being so rude so I guess that helped. Anyway, after that we did talk for a bit, and she was pretty cool.”

“Whoo. Nice! At least you’re friends now. Who knows where it leads from there.” He whistled in appreciation.

“Yah!” I stood up from my work and was about to slap his back for saying such things, when a strong grip stopped me in my tracks.

“Yah! Where are you going? Finish cleaning up first!” Jin – eomma screeched.

“N – Ne.” I nodded sheepishly and continued cleaning up the trash, as Jin – hyung added the trash from the bedroom into the pile.

I arranged all the trash and strode to place it outside when Jin – hyung’s teasing voice stopped me again.

“So you and Y/N are friends now, huh? Chukahae!”

“How did you even know, hyung? You were busy talking with the other girls!”

“What can I say, I’m just extra observant.” Jin – hyung smirked.

This was getting out of line. And I had a feeling the other hyungs knew too. I had to make sure so with everything I had, I bellowed out. “DOES EVERYONE KNOW ABOUT ME AND NOONA?”

“NEEE!” A cacophony of voices screamed back at me and I felt my face flame up in embarrassment.

Great. Just great.

Just then, Hoseok – hyung popped his head into the kitchen, a silly grin splitting his face. “Jungkookie you looked really cute in the balcony last night. Like a little baby bunny.”

“Hyung!”

Jimin – hyung emerged behind him with his mochi smile. “Wahhh. Kookie has a girlfriend!”

“Yah!”

“What? She is a girl and a friend, right? So girlfriend!” Jimin – hyung said in defense as he signaled to Hoseok – hyung in understanding.

“Hana dul set!” He began.

“Kookie has a girlfriend!” Jimin – hyung and Hoseok – hyung sang.

“Yah!”

“Kookie has a girlfriend!” Jin – hyung joined in.

“I do not!”

“Kookie has a girlfriend!” V – hyung chimed in.

“Hajima!”

“Kookie has a girlfrienddd!” All four of them sang in unison.

“Hajimalago!” I screamed in utter denial, my face the epitome of a human tomato, to the extreme delight of my hyungs who laughed their asses off.

We were making so much noise, that Suga – hyung and Rap – hyung also flocked to the kitchen to see my other hyungs in a laughing fit.

“What’s wrong?” Suga – hyung asked with his eyebrows raised.

“Oh nothing. Kookie is just annoyed that we called Y/N his girlfriend.” Jimin – hyung replied with a snicker.

“Well she isn’t!” I snapped back.

“Technically she is. As Jiminie said earlier, she is a girl and a friend.” Jin – hyung inserted with a smirk.

“Aish!”

“Whoa Jungkookie. Ease up. Why are you so defensive anyway? We’re just kidding around.” Rap – hyung teased.

“Unless of course, you there’s something more?” Suga – hyung uncharacteristically wiggled his eyebrows in mischief, leading my other hyungs into another round of boisterous laughter.

“Aish! Whatever. I give up!” I huffed and went to throw the trash.

Ughh. I hate it when I become the subject of teasing! I’m supposed to be the one doing the pranks and the teasing to my hyungs!

By the time I went back inside, my hyungs were done cleaning and were all slumped on the couches in the living room, with Olympus as Fallen playing on the tv.

Sigh. They started without me.

I plopped beside Jin – hyung on the couch nearest the door and focused on the film.

“Ooh. Loverboy Kookie is baack.” Jimin – hyung sang.

I shot him a frosty glare and he gave a nonchalant shrug in response as the other members chuckled. The screen showed the car in a tailspin after hitting a snowy bank when Jin – hyung’s phone loudly rang.

“Hyung!” Jimin – hyung complained.

“Sorry! I have to take this. Do you mind pausing the movie for a bit? This will be quick.” Jin – hyung dashed to take the call in the kitchen.

“Ne.” Suga – hyung replied clicking the pause button on the remote.

“Yeoboseyo? Ah Y/N! Annyeong!” I heard Jin – hyung exclaim in surprise and automatically my ears perked up in curiosity.

“Shopping? Yeah. I know someplace. I can show you if you like. No it’s no problem at all. I’m not busy.”

The other members were growing curious as well as they threw each other confused looks.

“What’s happening?” Hoseok – hyung whispered to Rap – hyung beside him.

“How should I know? I’m only eavesdropping here.” Rap – hyung whispered back.”

“Shh. Quiet! I can’t hear.” Suga – hyung hissed and the other two promptly shut up.

“It’s okay. Oh you’re outside the grocery store nearby. I’ll pick you up there then! See ya! Annyeong!” Jin – hyung ended the call, making us all scramble to look casual as if we weren’t just eavesdropping. He appeared in the living room then, phone on his hand and with an excited grin on his face.

“That was Y/N. She was out grocery shopping with Haru – ssi but then the store closest to their dorm didn’t have fresh ingredients. She asked if I knew any other grocery stores and I offered to drive her there.”

He checked his watch. “I’ll be back in an hour or two. Kookie you wanna come?”

“Yeah Kook. Go see your friend.” Jimin – hyung interjected meaningfully.

I gave him another one of my glares but he was unfazed.

I will get back at him for sure.

I looked back at Jin – hyung who was expectantly looking at me, a hint of a gleam in his eyes.

Well, it’s a no – brainer.

Rising up from the couch, I started walking to my room to get dressed, then glanced back at Jin – hyung with a playful smile.

“Sure! Let’s go.”

It was time to see my new friend.

 

Y/N’s POV

I put my phone back in my pocket, a bit in awe of what just transpired. Jin – oppa offered to drive us and we accepted just like that. We, mere humans were being driven by Worldwide Handsome Jin of the world phenomenon BTS, to go grocery shopping. What even?

Noticing my troubled expression, Haru – unni put a concerned hand on my shoulder. “What’s wrong, Maknae?”

“Unni, are we right for accepting his offer? I only wanted to ask for the name of the store and directions to go there. I didn’t want to trouble him.”

“It’s fine. Don’t worry. He probably wants to drive us there because he wants to help us to pick the ingredients. He is Eat Jin after all.” Unni said with a comforting wink.

I shot her a watery smile.

“You’re right. Maybe I’m just overthinking it. Gomayo Unni.”

She squeezed my shoulder in response.

We waited for about 10 minutes, when a black van screeched in front of us and the passenger window rolled down to reveal a man in a face mask and a black cap.

“Annyeong Noona!” The masked man spoke in a muffled manner.

No way.

“Jungkook?” I breathed in disbelief as another man in a mask and pink beanie waved behind him in the driver’s seat.

“Annyeong Y/N, Haru – ssi!” Jin – oppa cheerily greeted us.

“Annyeong Jin – sunbae!” Unni responded brightly.

“Get in.” He instructed us. Unni strode to slide the door open while I stood rooted to the spot in a daze.

 

 

What is Jungkook doing here?

“Maknae – ya let’s go!” Unni called out to me rousing me out of my stupor.

“Ne!” I hastily climbed into the van, closed the door behind me and we zoomed off.

I leaned towards Jin – oppa’s side. “Oppa, why is Jungkook here?”

He gave me a quick glance, focused back on the road then grinned. “I asked if he wanted to come and he said yes. I hope you don’t mind. Friends spend time with each other right?

Oh so by now everyone knows? I bet Jungkook got teased a lot as I did. Poor him.

“Ne. Jungkook is my friend. I don’t mind at all.” I responded with a shaky smile and oppa chuckled.

“By the way Oppa are you sure it’s okay for you guys to go out in public? You might get mobbed by a bunch of fans if you do.” I voiced my concern in Korean, hoping I got it right.

Apparently, I did because Jin – oppa just smiled at ease. “It’s fine. We especially picked inconspicuous clothes so we don’t pop out. We have masks too. Don’t worry we’re masters in blending in. Right Kookie?” He asked Jungkook on my right.

I turned to my right and saw Jungkook give me a confident wink under his face mask. “Ne, hyung. You’re right.”

I sighed in relief then sat back to my seat. “Okay then.”

A pleasant silence enveloped the car with the occasional humming of Oppa and Jungkook as Mic Drop by BTS blared on the radio. I couldn’t help bopping along as well and even Unni tapped her hands to the beat.

The song was literally lit. (Hah)

We pulled into the parking lot just as the song ended. Then Oppa cut the engine and we disembarked the car and went inside the grocery to do some shopping. We split into two groups. Unni went on her own to look at cookie cutters and some other baking materials while Worldwide Handsome and Golden Maknae went with me. With the agreement to meet by the cash register, we went our separate ways.

So, you’re probably wondering how was it to shop for groceries with two members of BTS?

Well, it was a pretty normal but still very entertaining affair.

Jin – oppa and Jungkook were a deadly combo. If you don’t find two people constantly teasing and arguing pleasant then I don’t suggest you shop with them. If you do and if you’re an ARMY, then I’m sure it’ll be the experience of a lifetime.

Anyway, they were bickering (in hushed tones. They were still careful enough to stay incognito.) for most of the time. Jin – oppa would point out an ingredient I was looking for and Jungkook would say that it wasn’t the right size or that it wasn’t fresh enough or that it was an expensive brand then Oppa would say that he knew nothing. Oppa was the cook of the house and he knew what ingredients were the best. As for me, I just stood by the sidelines, giggling now and then at their antics while taking note of what Oppa said of the brands and ingredients and whatnot. He was extremely good at grocery shopping. Jungkook was quite good too, as he pointed out some tips on checking for the freshest meat and produce that even Eat Jin – oppa approved of.

Sigh. The two were quite a funny and enigmatic pair. Squabbling one moment, then in agreement the next. I guess that’s how they show their love to each other. Jungkook, I noticed in particular, was very respectful towards his hyung. Whenever the older member would explain something to me, he would let his hyung finish first before he started teasing him again. He truly was a good kid.

Pretty soon, I got all the ingredients I needed and we sauntered over by the cashier to wait for Haru – unni.

“By the way Noona, what are you cooking?” Jungkook suddenly asked me as he and Oppa shot me inquiring looks.

“Filipino food. I’m surprising my unnis.” I replied with a mischievous beam.

Oppa and Jungkook hummed in understanding.

“Please don’t tell Haru – unni, okay?” I pleaded as I put my finger to my lips.

They nodded in agreement and wore twin smiles of secrecy.

“Arasso.”

Shortly, Unni arrived with her bundle and we proceeded to pay for our purchases. Thirty minutes later, we were dropped off at our dorm. We quickly bowed our thanks to the two Bangtan members and they sped off home. Wasting no time, I quickly changed into comfortable clothes then zipped to the kitchen to wash and prepare my purchases. Then I chopped the spices and vegetables, fetched the chicken and pork from the freezer to thaw it out and grabbed the jar of peanut butter from the cupboard. I was causing quite a commotion that my unnis ventured into the kitchen to take a look. Hastily, I covered the ingredients with my back to hide them from my unnis’ line of sight.

“What’s cooking, Maknae?” Somi – unni asked trying to peer over my shoulder in vain.

“I’m not saying anything! It’s a surprise!” I retorted waving my arms around to stop her.

“Yahh. Let us see. You didn’t even say anything about what you were buying even though I went with you!” Haru – unni whined.

I shook my head adamantly, keeping my arms spread out. “Aniyo.”

“Now, now guys. Let Y/N be. She just told us it’s a surprise. Come now, let’s go to the living room.” Feng Jiu – unni grabbed their arms and pulled them towards the living room.

Breathing a sigh of relief and thanking the heavens for Feng Jiu – unni, I started the rice cooker, then waited for the meat to thaw. Minutes later, after checking to see the all the meat was thawed out, I started cooking, remembering and putting into action all that my Mom taught me. These were my favorite Filipino dishes and I hoped that by making them, I not only showed who I am but I also conveyed my feelings of gratitude towards my unnis who have been very kind and supportive of me. Soon, after stirring the dishes around, everything was cooked so I turned off the stove strode to set the table serve all the food. Then after seeing that everything was in place I called out to my unnis. “Unnis! Lunch is served!”

A pattering of feet was heard and my unnis exploded into the dining area and into their seats, their eyes wide in amazement.

“Wahh. Daebak. Maknae you certainly outdid yourself!” Somi – unni cried in awe, holding her chopsticks up in the air.

“Everything looks and smelles so delicious!” Feng Jiu – unni groaned in delight.

“So what are these? I really want to know!” Haru – unni squealed in excitement.

Smiling warmly, I gestured to the dish on the right. “Thanks guys. So this one is called adobo. It’s a very famous Filipino dish made of either chicken or pork or a combination of both, drizzled in a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar, black pepper, bay leaves and a bit of sugar. It’s my absolute favorite dish.” Then I pointed to the dish on the left. “And this one is called kaldereta. You can use basically any kind of meat to make this, even goat, but I used pork for this one. It’s made of tomato sauce, liver spread, some basic spices like garlic and onions, carrots and potatoes, beef broth, and of course salt and pepper to taste.”

Finishing my little explanatory speech, I sat down in my seat then gestured with my arms. “Enjoy.”

Without hesitation, my unnis dug in to taste the food, while I anxiously waited for their verdict.

Instantantaneously, their eyes grew as big as plates as they shot each other incredulous looks.

Patay. Hindi patok sa panlasa nila. (I’m screwed. They hate it)

I was ready to throw down the towel when they simultaneously squealed “IT’S DELICIOUS!”

I gawked at them in surprise. “Jinja? You’re sure?”

“Yeah! I especially love this adobo did you call it? I love how it’s sour, sweet and a bit spicy all at once!” Somi – unni gushed, digging in to get more.

“And this kaldereta is just as heavenly! I didn’t know potatoes, pork and tomato sauce could taste this good!” Haru – unni beamed, swallowing a mouthful of it.

“Wahh. These are really delicious, Maknae! You should cook more of these!” Feng Jiu – unni winked in appreciation.

“Of course! I’m really glad you like them. I wasn’t sure you’d like them at all.” I admitted ruefully.

“Didn’t we tell you? We’d eat anything you cook!” Somi – unni interjected.

“Yeah, you did. Okay then, from now on I’ll cook Filipino food as often as you guys want!” I announced as I scooped my own food.

“Assa!” My unnis chorused back as we enjoyed our hearty lunch.

After that, we spent the rest of the day just lounging and chatting in our small living room. Little by little, we learned more about each other, as each shared stories of their own. Feng Jiu – unni was actually an heiress of a big company in China, but left home because her family, being old – fashioned, forced her to marry a guy for a company merger. Her family didn’t understand nor support her dream of pursuing her passion for dance, so with nothing but a small luggage of clothes, she set out into the real world. She got three, four, five jobs at once just to pay for rent and for dance school. It was then, she told us, that she realized that sometimes you got to make hard decisions for yourself even if it means letting some people go. She shared she did have some regrets, like never having repaired her relationship with her parents (they weren’t talking to each other anymore), but she never regretted following her passion because it gave her the happiness she never got from all the possessions she had before and because it lead her to meet us, her new family.

At this, the three of us had to hold back tears. It was true though. My unnis were my family here and they motivated me every day to work even harder. Seeing our sad faces after her revelation, she steered the subject to happier things like her likes. She told us she loved shoes because it gave her the extra boost of confidence she needed and made her feel like she could conquer the world. Spiders though, she couldn’t stand. Seeing one just made her freak out and we all laughed at her outraged expression when she said that.

Next to uncover her story was Somi – unni. She was an only child from a middle class family and she loved her parents very much, enough to leave the only home she’d ever known her whole life and migrate to America. She reminisced sadly about the tough time she had there. How she was bullied for being that Asian girl at the back of the room whom no one talked to. Who everyone made fun of and played nasty pranks on. Smiling tremulously, she shared she coped by releasing all her hurt into her songwriting and turning all the negativity into a positive outlook and a sunny smile. It also helped that her parents were there for her to cry on. Man, Somi – unni was indeed one tough cookie under all that sunny exterior.

Haru – unni came right after her and she shared her story with so much fervor, we were taken quite aback. But not like you think. According to her, for as long as she could remember, people always remembered her as the “cute” girl and nothing more. No matter what she accomplished they would only say “Oh what a cute girl!”, “She’s totally girlfriend material!” “She’s cute and that’s all that matters!” And it irked her so much. Why did people only care so much about looks? And every time they did point it out, they only expect her to do things that were well, cute. So imagine their surprise when one day being so fed up about it all, she rapped about how “cute” wasn’t just the only thing about her in front of her classmates in such an intense way their jaws dropped and only silence was heard afterward. Since then, her classmates and the other people around were careful about using the “cute” word lest she unleash another one of her “raps”. The whole time she was telling her story, her face was scrunched up in such a funny way, and we couldn’t help laughing at her and it made her quite annoyed. We apologized afterwards, holding back residual chuckles. This was a new side to Haru – unni we didn’t see before and we were glad that she hid such a feistiness beneath such a cute demeanor. Then moving on onto a much more pleasant topic, she said she was a huge anime and drama fan and I had to squeal along with her. I loved anime as well and Code Geass was my fave. She squealed even higher hearing me say that and she replied that Code Geass was one of her faves. We might have spent the whole day fangirling about anime if Somi – unni and Feng Jiu – unni interrupted after feeling left out. Whoops.

Finally, my turn came up and I started with the easy topics first. I told them I liked singing, anime, literature and poetry (I was an English major after all), playing basketball (I grew up with a LOT of men around), cooking and dressing up comfortably. Then I went into deeper territory. (I haven’t shared this to anyone else, not even Mi Young, but I felt if there were people I could share this part of me to, it would be my unnis.) I told them I was a simple girl from the province and we had a small farm back home. That my dad died early after having a heart attack from the stress of working too hard tending to it to provide for five children. Right after, I needed to help my mom provide for the family (Being the eldest in the Philippines meant to had to help provide for the family, especially if you have a single parent.) I was a scholar throughout my whole school years and I had to work on many part – time jobs to pay for my other fees (I didn’t want to bother my mom for the trouble.) I didn’t have much of a social life apart from the people from our neighborhood and it pretty much stayed the same way when I eventually went to college until I graduated. I told them Mi Young was my first ever friend that was a girl. And finally feeling a little guilty, I told them that there was a part of me that felt relieved that I was away from home because I no longer have to deal with the pressure of helping with the family. I didn’t really hate it, but there were times in my life when I thought about what it would feel like to live for myself for once and not think about responsibilities and duties, you know just to be free to live my dream. After revealing such a thing, I realized with a start that I sounded selfish for saying that so I apologized to my unnis sincerely.

Suddenly, they tightly enveloped me in a group hug and told me it was alright, that they understood and that I was strong for holding up until then and I could feel tears spring to my eyes, as I hugged them back.

This. This is what make girl friendships so special. Having men for friends is cool too. But there’s nothing like having a heart to heart with your gal pals. I’ll never exchange my unnis for anything. Thank you, Lord for bringing them to my life.

I thought with gratitude as I hugged them back just as tightly. We continued on to chit – chat on the more trivial stuff like celeb crushes and favorite movies, songs and places we wanted to go. In no time, dinner time came and I rose to start cooking. Like the lunch we had earlier, my unnis were very delighted with the Kare – Kare and Sinigang that I cooked. Dinner, like our previous meal, was once again, a very festive affair. However, after we finished eating and I cleaned everything up, I had one problem. I cooked too much for us. There was so much food left. Pondering over it, I finally came up with a solution and scurried to pack the food into tupperwares. Then, after grabbing a light blue hoodie, I barked a quick goodbye to my unnis and set off.

 

Jungkook’s POV

“So Jungkookie, did you have fun shopping with your girl- I mean with Y/N today?” Jimin – hyung smugly asked with a mischievous grin as he popped a piece of kimchi into his mouth.

I shot him a dark look, then smiled cheekily. “Why yes, I did Hyung. Thank you for asking. I had a blast. And you still have no jams.”

Jimin – hyung suddenly choked at my retort resulting in the booming laughter of the other members.

“But seriously Kookie, how did it go today?” Hoseok – hyung asked after he slurped a bit of hot soup.

“It was actually fun. Except for the part where Jin – hyung had to act like such a know-it-all and bickered all the time with me.” I shrugged casually.

“Yah! You were the one who kept on contradicting me! I’m Eat Jin! I know everything about food! You’re just my assistant, you hear me?” Jin – eomma retorted, clattering his spoon down at my accusation.

“Ne. Ne. You are Eat Jin. You are Worldwide Handsome. And you are the best. Happy now?” I said disarmingly.

“Yes, you are right about all that. I am happy. You are forgiven.” Jin – hyung said with a huff as he picked up his spoon again.

I chuckled.

Jin – hyung is so fun to mess with. Good thing I know just how to appeal to his ego, erm self – esteem.

Satisfied, I quickly popped a lettuce wrap in my mouth and chewed around it when suddenly the doorbell rang.

“I’ll get it!” I said quickly and grabbed the door.

“Annyeong Jungkook!” The familiar hoodie clad figure of Noona’s smiling face greeted me, carrying a paper bag.

“Noona annyeong!” I greeted back in pleasant surprise.

“Do you want to come in? We just started dinner.”

“Oh good! Perfect timing! Please don’t bother though. I just stopped by to give you this.” She handed me the bag.

“I made Filipino food for my unnis just as I told you guys earlier and they loved it! Anyway, I made too much so I figured I’d share some with you, Jin – oppa and the guys as my thanks. Really, thank you for coming with us. Send my thanks to Jin – oppa too. Well, I should get going now. Annyeong!” She waved me goodbye and rushed off.

“Annyeong!” I called to her back, closing the door with a chuckle.

An enigma indeed.

“Who was that Kookie?” V – hyung mumbled around a mouthful of food.

“Noona. She dropped this and immediately rushed home.” I put down the Tupperware on the table and sat back down to eat.

“Wah! Is this the Filipino food she was talking about?” Jin – hyung cried out as he quickly opened a Tupperware and a delicious aroma whiffed out.

“Yup.”

“Wah it smells delicious!” Rap – hyung added as he opened another Tupperware. Suga – hyung and Hoseok – hyung did the same and soon a whole blend of delicious aromas enveloped the room.

“Well, time for a taste then.” Eat Jin announced and took a scoop of a bright red dish.

“Wahh. Delicious!”

“This is tasty too!” Suga – hyung pointed to a buttery – yellow dish.

“This is even better!” Jimin – hyung gestured to a dark brown dish.

“Wah. Isn’t this Sinigang? Hyung remember we had this during a V – Live in the Philippines! Yummy!” Hoseok – hyung squealed in glee to Suga – hyung who nodded appreciatively.

“Wah. All of these are delicious. Y/N sure is full of surprises. Who knew, she could cook like this, eh? V – hyung commented, showing his boxy smile.

I tried all of Noona’s dishes as well and I’d have to say they were pretty darn delicious.

Nicely done, Noona. I thought with a smile.

“Wah, Kookie is smiling. Has she wooed your stomach now, Kook?” Jimin – hyung taunted me again.

“Has she wooed yours, Hyung?” I shot back challengingly.

“I’m afraid she has.” Hyung admitted jokingly and I laughed at him.

“Whoops. It looks like you have some competition now for the best cook position Hyung. You better watch out.” Rap – hyung jokingly warned Jin – hyung.

“Hmph. I’m still the best. Y/N comes after me though. Although, I would love to know the recipes to these! I want to try making these sometime.” Jin – hyung admitted with a confident beam.

“Aigoo Hyung. Confident as ever I see.” Rap – hyung replied with a chuckle.

“Of course. I’m Worlwide Handsome and Eat Jin after all.” Jin – hyung proclaimed with a dramatic hair flip and his signature flying kiss and we all burst into another laughing fit. The rest of the dinner continued in merriment and much later we all went to sleep.

As I lay in bed that night, I recalled the events of the day and thought with a crooked smile how awesome it was to finally have a friend who was a girl. I used to be so shy around girls, so much so that I couldn’t even muster up the courage to say Hi to my idol IU Noona whom I’ve seen in so many award shows. And so my hyungs used to bug me about it a lot. But now, as I’ve finally grown into a man, I’ve gained the confidence to interact with girls and now even have my first girl friend.

Yeah. Girl friend. Not girlfriend.

But I wonder?

I thought last, as I eventually drifted off to sleep.