36.

“What? Why are you two looking at me like that?”

Ga Eul raises her brows at the couple as she flickers between those faces, her fingers distractingly caresses their two-year’s hair who sits well on her lap, “I’m fine, can’t you see? Don’t give me such faces.”

“Are you drunk?”

She blows a raspberry upon the question from her friend whose arms crossed across chest, wearing a doubtful glare in the face. Ga Eul’s gaze then shifts towards Jinyoung, eyes widened as she seeks for help however the latter ends up siding with his wife, giving her a discontented look as she plays around as if her world is perfectly fine. Thus the lady ends up turning to her other side, avoiding those pair of eyes as she sighs, “Why would I be?”

A grin curls in a blink as the kid she is holding suddenly claps her hands and babbling indistinct words. For that simply adorable act, Ga Eul picks the girl up so that they are sitting faced each other, holding those little hands, “Right? Why would I be drunk when I want to see you? Right, Jin Hee?” Ga Eul’s laugh fills the tense space as the kid titters, cupping the latter’s cheeks after series of kisses on them, “Oh my, you’re pretty. Our Jin Hee is adorably pretty.”

“Eul…”

“Why? I told you already, I miss Jin Hee. That’s all.” The couple glances at each other before once more returning gaze to their friend whose eyes and smile hiding misery. And Ga Eul stays unfazed, “Oh. And also, since I’m here…” she hums, “…where did that café you two told me about again? That art gallery café…do you think it’s still open at this hour?”

The guy nods his head a few times, one foot kicking the air before a loud sigh escapes his mouth, “I guess that’s why your noona ends up being someone like that, you know…,” while one hand grips to the swing chain, his other hand twirls the lollipop he is holding, “…she’s outspoken…and bold, I thought it’s simply her trait. Only now that I figured out that was her way of encountering her…you know…that.” Baekhyun then shakes his head in disbelief together with faint chuckles, “And I’ve always thought Jongdae and Ga Eul are built differently so they’d complement each other.”

“But both of them are no different.”

“Exactly.” One thin smile cut across his lips, “They are both too kind as they went through hell.” He holds out one arm, patting the boy’s back a few times, “I’m sorry, Haneul. I’m talking as if you weren’t in the same boat as your sister. You surely had it rough as well.”

Upon that, Haneul backs out a bit as he denies the claim. His gaze tears from the dark sky, falls down to the cup of hot chocolate – that Baekhyun bought for him – in his hand. “No, I’m absolutely fine about it. Of course it was frustrating at times, but Mom and Noona had it worse. They remember everything. So it must’ve been thousand times harder for them.” The boy chews his lips, shooing the tremble in his voice away as he lifts his head up, “And because I have everyone to thank for, growing up without Dad wasn’t all that bad. I’m living a good life, you see?”

Their soft giggles unite in the air whilst Baekhyun extends one arm, ruffling the younger’s hair in adoration. “You’re such a good kid, Haneul.”

“Not really.”

Again, the silence conquers the space between them for a while before he continues after two short sips of the drink.

“I hated Noona, at first. With thoughts that she left Mom, living far from us. She was always busy, never visits home. Let alone attending any of my school’s occasion. And I burst up once, when Mom told me to come with her to Shanghai to visit Noona.”

For a moment, the boy glances to his right for checking out the other’s reaction – and resumes after meeting a pair of curious eyes of Baekhyun’s.

“I yelled at Mom and ran out of the house,” he laughs sheepishly, embarrassed by his past acts, “And Jongdae hyung brought me home after he found me sulking here. At this park. I still remember how he convinced me to stop disliking my own sister and follow Mom to pay her a visit. Hyung talked very kindly of Noona at that moment, as if he knows her so well.”

“So you learned it the hard way.”

“I did.” He nods a few times, bits of remorse still lingers around himself as the memory of it flashes through his mind. “I thought Noona lived comfortably there, you know, she worked while taking her master’s degree classes, and she lived alone so I assumed she earned a lot. But it turned out that Noona–” Haneul’s words halt midway, lips pressing onto each other as he takes a deep breath, “–well it seemed that Mom purposely brought me there so that I would stop misunderstanding my sister. Only then that I found out my pocket money, my school and club activities fees were all from her. Noona made sure that I have a great life while living hers–” the kid frowns, “–pathetically. Like a fool.”

“Wow…that’s so cool of her,” Baekhyun gapes upon hearing the scoop which he considered as news, feeling a lot humbler now that he learned a lot more on that side of the lady. “Then how’s her at home? As usual?”

“You bet,” the boy rolls his eyes before taking the last sip of the drink and leaves the cup hanging between his lips – in a playful manner. “Still putting up that poker face of hers. But at least we’re aware of everything this time, so Mom made me keep an eye on her, making sure she eats her meals, we even sleep altogether, three of us like the old times so that she sleeps well. All sort of stuff.”

Haneul takes in a deep breath, in hopes to brush off the sympathy for his sister that coats his heart