Chapter 10

The Morning After

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A warm ball of light filtered through white sheer curtains as a defenseless figure lay completely covered under the duvet. Rays of brightness cast squares onto the glossy wooden floor, casting shadows on the single grey fluffy carpet where the bed rested.

Suddenly, the sound of a familiar loud ringing broke the peace of the quiet morning, causing Jiyeon to hold her head in pain. Groaning, Jiyeon stuck one hand out of her cozy duvet and reached over to her nightstand. She patted the table a few times before finally locating her phone.

“Hello?” mumbled Jiyeon, not bothering to look at the caller ID.

“Noona,” Mingyu’s cheerful voice greeted her as she let out another groan.

“Do you have to be this loud?” snapped Jiyeon, holding her head in pain. “What do you want?”

“Is that the way you greet your beloved younger brother?” Mingyu’s voice was laced with sarcasm. “Where are you?”

“At home obviously,” murmured Jiyeon. “Where else would I be?”

“Did you drink?”

“mmm,” Jiyeon felt herself slowly drift off to sleep once again.

“What did you say?” asked Mingyu’s loud voice, not understanding what Jiyeon had said.

“I only had a couple of drinks,” hissed Jiyeon, still feeling hungover. Her voice was still raspy and laced with sleep. “God, I sound like a man right now.”

“Noona, you know can’t drink,” nagged Mingyu, causing Jiyeon to scoff.

“I know, I know,” Because she was still completely under the covers, Jiyeon shuffled around on her back before settling in a comfortable position. “I was with Soojung and everyone.”

“Soojung noona?” Mingyu’s voice suddenly sounded excited. “When do you think I can meet her again?”

“Kim Mingyu,” Jiyeon scolded sternly. “She has a boyfriend.”

“Geez noona,” As if his sister was right next to him, he could already feel the pain on the back of his head from her invisible slap. “I was just kidding.”

Jiyeon let out a loud sigh in annoyance. 

“Did you really disturb my sleep just to nag me about drinking and ask me about Soojung?” 

“No,” Mingyu quickly spoke loudly into the phone, afraid Jiyeon was going to hang up. Then, he would have to face an even scarier woman’s wrath. To be frank, he loved the women in his family, but they were scary as well. “Mom wanted me to remind you that we’re having dinner together next week.”

“A simple text would’ve been fine,” grumbled Jiyeon in irritation. It was obvious Jiyeon wasn’t a morning person.

“Mom wanted me to call you,” Mingyu brought his voice to a whisper. “Plus, she’s standing right next to me.”

“Alright, tell her I’ll be there,” mumbled Jiyeon, knowing Mingyu wouldn’t leave her alone if she said no. 

“See you in a week sweetie!” Jiyeon heard her mom’s loud voice through the phone and hissed in pain. 

Jiyeon sighed in relief just as the call cut off and threw her phone onto the pillow besides her. Unable to fall back asleep, Jiyeon threw the duvet off her upper body. She blinked a few times, in an attempt to help her eyes adjust to the illumination directed right at her.

Her head spun as she sat up slowly, causing her to groan in pain.

“,” cursed Jiyeon. “I’m never drinking ever again.”

She looked around her room, still trying to adjust to the brightened room. Her eyes landed on the nightstand beside her bed.

There was a glass of water glistening next to a tablet. Taking a closer look while holding her head in pain due to the sudden movement, she noticed that it was Advil.

“Who brought me home?” whispered Jiyeon in confusion. She popped the tablet in and took a sip of the water, immediately clenching her thirst. “What the hell happened last night?”

Jiyeon closed her eyes and tried to think. The last thing she remembered was taking a sip of the margarita. After that, everything else was a blur. She could vaguely see a tall figure helping her into her apartment and tucking her in, but she couldn’t put her finger on who it could be. She took another sip of the water and placed it back on the nightstand. No matter how hard she tried to remember who the man was, she couldn’t. Her pounding head was clearly not helping.

Giving up, Jiyeon slowly pushed back her covers and got out a bed. She let out a loud groan as the room around her spun. 

Jiyeon immediately stripped herself from last night’s dress and put on Seokjin’s old college sweatshirt. Her brother was a lot taller than her, so the sweatshirt almost reached down to her knees. 

Because she spent most of her life away from home and was constantly homesick, Jiyeon had taken a couple old crewnecks and sweatshirts from her brothers. It reminded Jiyeon of her childhood, where little 7-year-old Jiyeon and 5-year-old Mingyu would sneak into 9-year-old Seokjin’s room to sleep. Their parents would often find the trio tangled up in Seokjin’s sheets, cuddling. Because she wore them so often to sleep, it had become a habit even now. 

Taking another deep breath, Jiyeon slowly made her way to the restroom, where she stared in horror at her tangled hair and messy face.

“God, I look terrible,” muttered Jiyeon to herself as she began wiping last night’s makeup off. Her lipstick was slightly smeared as well as her eye makeup, making her look like a panda.

She splashed cold water on her face just to feel something refreshing and instantly wished she could wash her brain from the hangover. 

Feeling the familiar dryness in , she quickly put her tangled hair into a messy bun and stumbled her way towards the kitchen, as if she was still drunk. The path to the kitchen seemed to take forever and Jiyeon let out a loud groan in frustration.

Right when she made it to the doorway of her kitchen, Jiyeon immediately stopped in her tracks. There stood a man with his back facing her as he casually flipped something in the pan.

Not knowing what to do, Jiyeon stood staring at the strange man in her kitchen.

“You’re awake?”

Jiyeon immediately recognized the voice and let out a sigh in relief,