A/N - Prompt from the amazing Burnirotihaari!

Throwing Stones at Glass Houses

Chaeyoung loved Saturdays.

The first day of the weekend. No school, a whole Sunday to look forward to and her Appas never asked where she was all day. Albeit she was usually with the more sane Dahyun and Mina who kept her in check, however those two were busy today leaving Chaeyoung to her own devices. For some reason she wasn’t looking forward to this particular weekend. Ever since Tzuyu had….well since that mess everyone in the house had been awkward about it.

Nobody really brought it up, especially not Tzuyu. It was like they were all trying to forget it ever happened, which Chaeyoung thought was stupid. It happened, they weren’t all crowding Tzuyu at the moment because they suddenly loved their little sister. They were doing it because they all felt guilty, Chaeyoung more than most. Only Chaeyoung was doing the opposite of coddling, she was avoiding.

It wasn’t Tzuyu’s fault, any of it. It was just that whenever Chaeyoung locked eyes with her she was reminded that she had ditched her ONLY little sister without even realising. It made her feel dirty. Being in the house, with Tzuyu in such close proximity, it just physically hurt her inside. So when Somi asked if she wanted to go joyriding in her Mother’s car she jumped at the chance to leave the house.

The plan was to throw a brick they found through the boys’ school front window.

She wasn’t really feeling it though, choosing to just fake a smile and nod whilst Somi drove alarmingly fast through the streets. Chaeyoung just kept her gaze out the window, people watching more than anything. Watched some rich guy ignore a homeless man, watched the local cafe owner argue about the bill with a customer, watched Amber Liu in an alleyway making some sort of shady drug deal. They often called Seoul a hub of fine arts, the home of squeaky clean kpop. She could laugh, how wrong they were.

“What’s with you?” Somi eventually asked,

“Huh?”

“You’ve looked like a kicked puppy since you got in,” Somi explained, skidding round a corner, “What’s eating you?”

Chaeyoung sighed, “Sorry…it’s Tzuyu.”

“I heard about that, .” Somi growled, “If it helps when the story broke some dudes from the boys school beat him up when he came to collect his things.”

“It does a bit.”

“The rumour is that she lead him on.”

“WHAT!?” Chaeyoung shouted so loud Somi briefly lost control,

“Don’t yell like that, .” Somi scolded once she had regained control, slowing down in case Chaeyoung had another outburst,

“Who the said that!?”

“He did.” Somi told her, “But Jennie’s the one who told me.”

“Why were you talking to Jennie?” Chaeyoung snapped, “And why would you believe anything that had to say?”

“I don’t know,” Somi shrugged, “Nobody knows anything and you guys are keeping quiet. People are going to make assumptions.”

“Tzuyu would never do that,” Chaeyoung growled, “That …he already assaulted her, now he’s making out she seduced him. Tzuyu isn’t like that. You know that, right?”

“I only met her once, Chae.” Somi reasoned, “In fact the only people publicly defending her are Hyewon and Chong of all people.”

Chaeyoung was seething, “Tzuyu is a baby. She’d never do anything like that.”

“Okay.”

“She’s way too innocent!”

“Okay! Chae I believe you…but I don’t know if anyone else will.”

Chaeyoung punched the console, “That e bastard!”

Somi side eyed her and suddenly took a sharp turning. Chaeyoung got her phone out and warned the “Tzuyu Watch” groupchat of the horrible rumours that had been going round. She didn’t mention Jennie, they all had experience trying to tell Sana that girl was toxic but she never believed them. Sana though the sun shone out of Jennie’s . It was gross. Chaeyoung had a theory it had started as a crush on Rosé and then over time Sana got pulled into Jennie’s cult.

As she basked in the equal fury of her sisters, she didn’t notice Somi’s new route. They had never gone this way before and they definitely were not heading towards the school. Heading away from public streets and into residential areas. Eventually coming to a stop outside a house Chaeyoung had never been to before. She didn’t notice for a moment, then when it dawned on her that they were no longer moving she looked up.

“Where are we?”

Somi looked to the house they were next to, “He lives there.”

“Who does?”

“Who’d you think?”

Chaeyoung swallowed and opened the door. She got out and looked over the top of the car at the small house a career in teaching could buy. Chaeyoung looked out the house with detest, so he was in there. That bastard who attacked her little sister was in there. She’d fantasized about this moment, being this close to him. After it had all come out she had made every threat under the sun that she would defend the honour of her baby sister.

Something dark filled her. It was like anger but it didn’t burn, it was icy cold. There was warmth somewhere in there - building, but for that instant her heart was ice. She hadn’t known what to do after Tzuyu…when she found out what had happened. The initial reaction had her screaming and crying and throwing her fist at the wall.

Her fingers brushed loosely over the healing, split knuckles on her right hand.

She wasn’t comforting like Jihyo or Momo and she lacked the natural protective instinct that Jeongyeon had. Truth is Chaeyoung was a side character, always in the big group but not important to the main cast. It was ironic, she had taken Tzuyu’s old role. Like it was her penance for being a bad sister, a bad unnie.

The ice melted away and soon the burn began.

There was a man in there that hurt her family. He had touched someone who was supposed to be untouchable and to avoid a scandal he got away with a “misconduct” firing. What if he hadn’t been pulled off? Tzuyu’s vow of silence proved one thing. Had it gone that far they would never have found out. Chaeyoung began burning hotter and hotter, ice melting away and fire replacing it at the thought of him getting away with it.

Then she realised how many men had gotten away with it before. How many times poor, innocent Tzuyu had been in that position. And the worst part? For most of them she didn’t even know it was wrong, Tzuyu was too young to know what those men were doing. So many men got away with it and even with their protection Tzuyu still couldn’t escape it. And she hadn’t even told Chaeyoung a thing!

At that thought something snapped.

The burning stopped.

Chaeyoung’s ears stopped rushing.

And for a brief second she thought she’d be able to get back in the car.

SMASH!

She blinked, her hand was out stretched before her and Mr Tuan’s window was smashed through. The brick they had planned to throw at the boys’ school gone from the passenger foot well.

To make things worse a hand clapped on her shoulder, when she turned there was an officer stood there.

“Umm….I dropped the brick?”

_____

Chaeyoung had been taken home by the police a lot.

But this was the first time she had no mischievous smirk on her face.

She kept her gaze on the floor as the two officers knocked on the front door.

Mina answered it and Chaeyoung looked up briefly to see the soul crushing disappointment on her face. She stood aside and let the officers bring Chaeyoung to where everyone else was sat in the living room watching TV. Sang and Min-Jun were cuddled on the couch and stood abruptly when two policemen came in.

“Chaeyoung!” Min-Jun snapped, “What’s she done now officer?”

The first officer smiled kindly, the second looked uncomfortable and both Sang and Min-Jun knew why. The girls were dotted around the room watching, each looking concerned. Dahyun, who had been laying on the floor doing a puzzle with Mina (who had stormed upstairs) stood and went to stand behind Tzuyu in the armchair. Chaeyoung’s lack of smirk had them worried, this was serious.

“She threw a brick through someone’s living room window.” Officer Happy said,

“A very serious offence.” Officer added,

“Kim Chaeyoung! What the hell!?” Sang scolded,

“Who’s house officer?” Min-Jun asked, “We’re happy to pay any damages.”

It bothered Chaeyoung a little as to how this all seemed second nature to her fathers. Did she really up this often?

“It was one Mr Mark Tuan,” Officer said, not noting the tension rise in the room, “She threw it from the passenger side door of her friend’s mother’s car.”

Tzuyu stood immediately and left the room.

“Was it something I said?” Officer asked sarcastically,

Sang glared at him, “We had an altercation with him recently. He assaulted our youngest after one of his science classes.”

“That would explain why he refused to press charges.” Officer Happy acknowledged, he looked over the glum faces in the room, “I suppose we should leave you to discipline your daughter. Maybe we’ll keep this one off the record.”

“Really!?” Chaeyoung asked, finally looking up,

“Really??” Office snapped,

“No charges filed and…honestly I would have done the same to protect my sister.”

“But--”

“Just let it go.”

“Fine. But we still have to inform social--”

“Thank you, Officers!” Sang smiled not wanting to hear what Officer was about to say, “Let me show you out.”

Chaeyoung got a clap on the back by Officer Happy as he went.

Cue a massive chewing out by her Appas in front of the majority of her sisters before everyone admitted they would have done it too. Because of this her sentence was lessened and she was just sent to bed without dinner. That was fine with her, she’d lost her appetite anyway. Before she went to her room however she decided to make a stop. She knew she had to talk to Mina but maybe that could wait for tomorrow.

“Tzuyu?” She called poking her head round the door,

Tzuyu was laying on her bed and looked at Chaeyoung as she came in.

“You’re an idiot.”

“I know.” Chaeyoung smiled, sitting on the edge of her bed, “Can we talk?”

Tzuyu nodded, “Why would you throw brick through his window?”

Chaeyoung shrugged, “I was mad. I haven’t been much of a big sister lately.”

Tzuyu was quiet.

“I just,” Chaeyoung sighed, “I remembered back when we used to tell each other everything. What happened?”

“We grew apart, it happens.”

“But that’s not fair,” Chaeyoung whined, “I didn’t mean to ditch you.”

“I know.”

Chaeyoung looked at her, “Can we go back to that?”

“To what?”

“To telling each other lame secrets and acting like they’re a big deal.” Chaeyoung laughed, “I miss you.”

Tzuyu finally smiled back, “I’d like that.”

Chaeyoung got up to lay next to her, “You start.”

“Okay,” Tzuyu thought a moment, “Elkie skipped school Friday to hang out here.”

“No way!” Chaeyoung nearly squealed, but she was too cool for that, “So are you two…together?”

Tzuyu sighed, “I don’t think I should really be dating right now.”

Chaeyoung frowned, “I guess.”

“But we did make out a little.”

“OH MY GOD!”

“Your turn now.”

“I kissed Dahyun in the treehouse during the party.”

“WHAT!?”

Sure in an hour her Appa Min-Jun would come up and scold her for not being in bed but it would be worth it. Worth it because for that one afternoon they felt like little kids again, sharing lame secrets and gossiping about their Unnies.

Shutting out the world for a moment.