Chapter 2:

Wendy thought back to the past that connected them all together because it was rather unusual for a group of girls to be hanging out like this when they were with varying ages.

Wendy had been the fourth of the five to join the orphanage. She didn’t like to think a lot about what brought her there but she had been more than scared. After all, she had little to scarce fluency in Korean after having spent the majority of her life in Canada.

It was beyond any hardship she had ever undertaken in all of her ten years. Seulgi had also been ten. Irene was thirteen year old. Joy was eight but would be the last one to join them at the orphanage while Yeri was the baby she was at five when Wendy arrived at the building.

They all had a hand in raising each other but none more so than Irene who had been the primary caretaker of Yeri and Joy.

Irene had been in the orphanage system since she was a baby herself but had been moved from place to place all through her thirteen years until she had been placed in the current one Wendy was sent to. But Seulgi had been there at that specific orphanage for many years before any of them arrived. Yeri had been the next to go into the orphanage system followed by Wendy and finally Joy.

Wendy and Seulgi were friends at first sight. There was no other way to describe it when the headmistress brought Wendy into the room the two would be sharing. This headmistress was as strict as any and had long since decided she was the head of everything and made all of the important decisions like living arrangements and what would be on the menu for the day the very morning of.

Seulgi had shown Wendy the ropes of the intricate wheelwork of the orphanage and Seulgi had been the one to introduce her to Irene. Baby Yeri had been holding tightly to Irene’s hand at that very second and had darted behind the bigger girl. Irene took one look at Wendy and smiled a beautiful kind one that included sparkly eyes. Wendy had been transfixed at the sight of such a vision and had to have Seulgi squeeze her hand to drag her from that brief stupefaction.

When Joy was introduced by Yeri of all people, everything became complete.

Wendy idly looked around the café she was enjoying her time at. Lunch was over and the restaurant had not provided dessert much to Irene’s dismay. And so off to the closest café they went in which they would celebrate Yeri’s and Joy’s homecoming back into the city for the summer. Both girls would be staying at Irene’s place since Wendy and Seulgi’s dorm didn’t allow prolonged stays for visitors.

Wendy idly wondered when Joy would get under Irene’s skin to the point either Wendy or Seulgi would be receiving a call to take the exhuberant girl in.

Chapter 3:

Joy found herself pouting at the room she would be sharing with Yeri. It was modest size and Irene had already designated their beds so they wouldn’t be fighting over it. The older girl also showed them where their bathroom would be letting slip the fact that they would be sharing, what they were allowed to touch and prohibited from going. Joy found delight at such rules because depending on her mood she would be following them or not.

Irene gave her, Joy, a specific glare as she told them where she kept her spare key in case they lose the one she designated them. It was only Saturday and the first day they came back into the city but she still saw it fit to warn them that she wouldn’t be leaving her room in the middle of the night in case either of them were locked out after having snuck out.

Yeri and Joy shared a look which Irene immediately caught and got after them for with even more warnings layered on top. Yeri was the one to placate her in the only way she knew and Joy absentmindedly eyed the window. She saw a park not too far from the apartment building and she wanted a new wallpaper for her phone to match her new settings here. And it was almost sunset, her favorite time of day.

After Irene let them know her work times and when she usually is back home during the weekdays, Joy made sure she hugged her. Irene was caught a bit off guard but returned the hug with a warm squeeze. In the back, Yeri made fun of Joy but Joy wanted Irene to know how happy she was to be here with her. And she had already showed Yeri the same too so there was no need for another group hug.

With that settled, Joy made her escape with Irene yelling after her for tricking her and catching her off guard as Joy dashed out of the apartment with her new key in hand.

Once outside, Joy breathed in the city air that was permeating the air. She didn’t mind the bustle of the city, after all, the orphanage was on the very fringes of the city and the headmistress would take them on field trips to the center of the city where all of the historical sites and museums were.

Joy found the park easy enough as it was only around the corner. She looked for a picturesque view where she could take her picture and walked around the park for the perfect shot.

After a good while, as the sun was starting to disappear, she pouted. She didn’t want to keep the same picture of the silhouette of the trees at her house’s backyard as her wallpaper. She tried looking for a similar view but she would have to climb up the playground to get a decent picture but there were so many kids already on the equipment and Joy knew she would not get any kind of picture with the way the kids were running and pushing anyone who got in their way.

Joy was about to call it a day when she caught sight of a dog. Now, all of her friends knew she had one weakness that never failed to divert her attention and it was this. The small black and brown dog was too adorable to ignore and it came running right at her. Obviously, this dog had good taste.

“Aww,” Joy knelt down to pet it as it jumped on its hind legs to place its front paws on her knees. “Aren’t you a pretty dog,” she cooed to it while scratching its head. She immediately looked up, expecting to see its owner following after. When she couldn’t find anyone watching out for the dog or even looking around for it, she picked it up so she could get a closer look for a collar. “Where’s your owner pretty doggie?” she asked it in that same voice all of her friends found annoying but Joy couldn’t help it.

The dog had a harness on but no tag. She frowned but the dog whined at her and she found herself smiling again.

She wasn’t sure what she should do. Should she look around for the owner? That was the obvious thing to do but right at that moment, Irene made her appearance.

The older girl took one look at the dog in her arms before she huffed. “Really, Sooyoung? Already?”

Joy bit her lip before she pouted. “But Joohyun,” she held the dog out to Irene. “Look at the poor thing. I was just about to look for its owner.”

Irene snorted unladylike. “And what? I just told you the rules. No dogs in the apartment.”

Joy blinked, the other girl was way ahead of her and she tried not to show that she had already forgotten that rule. Joy was just about to suggest they take the dog home too as it was getting well into the night with the sun on the very crest of the horizon. “But we can’t leave it here.”

Joohyun tried not to look at her and the dog in order to be strong and steadfast. “We have to. I don’t want to get in trouble with my neighbors.”

Joy walked closer to her. “But what if we sneak it in?”

Irene groaned. “Sooyoung.”

Joy looked down at the dog and it her chin. “Aww.”

“How about this, we’ll look around for the owner for ten minutes before we leave it in the play pen?” she nodded to the corner of the playground where there was a child appropriate fence surrounding a patch of the playground obviously meant for smaller kids.

Joy frowned down at the dog as it whined. “What do you think?” she asked the dog and Irene groaned again. The dog her chin again. “Fine. Okay,” she faced Irene. “We’ve decided.”

Irene rolled her eyes. “Hurry up.” She started walking away. “I don’t want to leave Yerim alone by herself for too long.” She muttered some things under her breath as Joy followed after her but the younger girl was too occupied to cradle the dog to her chest.

Joy was half and half on whether or not she wanted to find the owner. If they did, then the dog will be safe and perfectly happy to be reunited with its owner. If they didn’t, she could come back in the morning and check up on the dog again. Obviously, the dog and Irene would find the first option the best but Joy was selfish enough to want the second one especially as the dog continued to give her kisses. Sooyoung idly commended the owner for raising this dog to be so affectionate.

When the ten minutes were up, Irene sternly pointed at the now empty playground. “Now.” While muttering something about dealing with this and working tomorrow.

Joy skipped over while being careful not to jostle the dog too much in the process

She would be back first thing in the morning.