Eunbi was beyond angry when she arrived home that day. She was so sick and tired of it all that nothing really mattered anymore. It’d become obvious earlier how Yixing seemed to have a hard time trusting her, especially after what she told him. And after what he’d heard. With all that in mind, she had done her best to focus the rest of the school day. To no avail though, and halfway into the fifth period Eunbi went home, faking a sickness. No one was there when she got home, which was a relief considering she didn’t want to explain why she was back so early.

Taking this opportunity, Eunbi headed for her bedroom and the file laying underneath her mattress. A file she’d hid for several weeks now without anyone knowing. Oh Jihye. The name was enough to send chills down her spine. Not to mention the death certificate that greeted her as soon as she flipped the page. The sight made her just as uneasy as it’d done the first time. Eunbi heaved a deep sigh and then continued, she couldn’t stare at the piece of paper any longer and instead decided to look for any other clues that might help her. She wanted to see if there was anything that might give her an answer to why Luhan and Sehun held such a grudge against one another.

Nothing. She couldn’t find a single thing that might help her. No papers or anything revolving Luhan or Sehun was written. Maybe there were no documents about them in this file. Or maybe there had been no reason to document the sudden changes in behaviour. Eunbi frowned at the thought. It seemed a bit weird that the whole ordeal would be swept under the rug. Like the hostility between the two brothers were unimportant. Maybe their father just saw it as a reaction to their mother’s death. Or maybe he wasn’t even around to notice the change. What was true and what wasn’t, she couldn’t know. But Eunbi decided, now that no one was home, to sneak into her step-father’s study. It would most likely be the only chance she would get.

She took the file with her as she creeped down the stairs and made her way over to the room that she knew was forbidden. Still. Eunbi paid no attention to the rule as she slipped inside and closed the door behind her. Before starting her search, she put the folder where she’d first retrieved it from. The next task was a bit harder considering that the whole room was filled with shelves that were stacked with folders of different colours and labels. It would be a miracle if Eunbi found anything of relevance before anyone got back. To put it simply. It was a race against time.

Half an hour later and out of breath, she began to realize that it was harder than she’d first imagined. Eunbi hadn’t found a single file or note with either Luhan or Sehun’s name. And she began to wonder if anything about them existed. It didn’t seem so. At least not in this room. Then again. Where else would their father store information about his sons? Wouldn’t it have been best to have it there, where everything else was? It made no sense to Eunbi, who was close to giving up. Something she would’ve done if it hadn’t been for that she noticed a small chest standing in the corner. A piece of furniture she’d never seen before. With a shrug of her shoulder and with the thought of why not, she walked up to it, only to be further disappointed when seeing that it was locked.

“Great. Now what.”

The feeling of defeat was enough for Eunbi, who slumped down in the desk chair. There was nothing besides a key that could open the lock and thereby give her access to whatever lay in the chest. Her mind ran wild at the possible content. That it was important was rather obvious. But still. She wanted to look even though it was prohibited.

Her train of thoughts were suddenly interrupted by what she thought was footsteps. Eunbi couldn’t be sure though, for the sound had only lasted a second or two. It was more than enough for her to panic and without as much as a second thought, Eunbi rushed towards the door. She pulled it open with such care no one could possibly have heard it. Or so she thought. Her pulse skyrocketed and she faltered backwards, so surprised by the male’s appearance that she fell silent. Not a word slipped from her slightly parted lips for she waited, horrified and relieved at the same time. Horrified about being caught, but relieved that it wasn’t her step-father who stood before her.

“What are you doing?” his voice sent chills down her spine. Everything about him made her heart beat a little faster. Whether it had anything to do with what Luhan said in school or just the fact that he’d caught her there she couldn’t really know. One thing was for sure though, Eunbi couldn’t let him know the reason to why she’d broken the rules and entered the room. He would most certainly not be happy if he found out she was looking into stuff she shouldn’t.

“Just, you know . . .” Eunbi gulped. Her thoughts were running wild and her mind was one big chaos.

“You what?” she stared at the floor, unable to meet his gaze. The action only spurred Sehun on and within a few seconds, he’d closed the gap between the two of them. He grabbed a hold of her arms and thus caused Eunbi to look up, terrified that he was acting so out of character. It was unlike him to get so worked up. At least against her.

“What have you done in here?” he demanded to know, terrified that Eunbi had gotten a hold of information he didn’t want her to know.

“Nothing. I’ve done nothing.” Eunbi could feel herself grow scared. Even more so when he began to hyperventilate. He was breathing fast, too fast, and she felt panic-stricken by what was happening. She didn’t know what to do either since she’d never experienced anything like it before. And to make matters worse, Sehun fell to his knees with a thud. This was particularly terrifying for Eunbi, who stared at the male with wide eyes before she kneeled down beside him. Something had to be done. He needed to calm down. And that fast or he’d might faint.

“You have to calm down, Sehun. Look . . . See, you have to,” it wasn’t working. He didn’t listen and Eunbi was once again left helpless as he continued, his breathing only increasing in speed. It was appalling to watch him like that. And without a solution to the problem, she took a gentle hold of his chin and forced him to look at her. Eunbi hoped it would help him calm down some. It worked a little. But not enough.

“Here. Watch me. Breathe in. Breathe out. Slow and steady.” she was so fixated on the problem that no other thought crossed her mind. Eunbi wanted this whole ordeal to be over because it was making her really uneasy. Worried to be exact. Still holding onto him, she mimicked the way he was supposed to breath. It was important that he relaxed and calmed down as it would allow him to regain the control. To her immense relief, he listened this time around.  

What neither of them noticed was that someone came home.

“See. That’s better.” for the first time in her life, she complimented Sehun, whose breathing had now returned to normal.

“What’s going on here?” Eunbi scrambled back, letting go of Sehun’s chin as a result, before she glanced at her mother. The older woman stood in the doorway staring at the two teenagers. The expression upon her mother’s face showed she was disappointed and upset. Even Sehun, who never showed much emotion, were hesitant. He knew he wasn’t supposed to be in there. Something his father had reminded him of a dozen times the past years.

“It’s my fault. I wanted to show her something.” what. Why was he lying? Even more, why was he lying to save her? Eunbi looked at him, as if asking him why he wasn’t telling the truth. Sehun didn’t meet her gaze though, and instead apologized for breaking the rules.

“Well. I won’t tell your father anything. But just don’t do it again.” what the hell. Even her mother was acting weird. Eunbi had been certain the woman would’ve made a huge deal out of this. Like she always did.

“I won’t. We won’t.” Sehun met Eunbi’s gaze as he said the last sentence. It became apparent then, that he knew something he didn’t want her to know. The only problem was what. Had it anything to do with him? Maybe. And if so. Did the answer to her question lay in the chest standing in the corner. There were so many things she wanted answered. But with everyone refusing to speak, all she could do was wait. Wait and hope that someone spilled the secrets.

“Okay then.” still confused by what’d just happened, she followed Sehun as he stood up and slipped past her mother. The two then proceeded to head up the staircase, with Eunbi going first. She was right about to push open her bedroom door when Sehun latched onto her arm and pulled her with him into his room. He closed the door and placed himself in the way so she wouldn’t be able to escape. What he obviously did not know was that she wasn’t afraid of him. Not in the way she feared Luhan.

“What did you do in my father’s study?” tell the truth or lie. Those were the only options Eunbi had. And knowing how miserable she was after all the lies she’d told Yixing, the girl decided to the do right thing. She told him exactly what she’d done. How she had been in the study several weeks ago and taken a file. One she’d hid away in her room till today. This caught Sehun’s attention.

“What file? Eunbi backed away for she knew that what she was about to say would be met with a strong reaction.

“Your mother’s.”

Silence, silence and silence. She knew within that telling the truth was right. But still, she began to hesitate the longer he kept silent. It made her uneasy. Especially so since she could see how his expression changed. Eunbi froze in her place, her eyes snapping shut, when he stalked forward. She was terrified he’d do something. That he would punch her. Okay. Maybe not punch her. But she was still wary of his actions.

“Is that everything? Did you only look at my mother’s file?” sure, he was far from happy that she was looking into things that didn’t concern her. Still. He was also relieved that she hadn’t gotten a hold of his folder. Eunbi nodded, her eyelids slowly fluttering open to the sight of Sehun. His gaze found hers and she gulped. Nervous and with a steadily increasing heartbeat, Eunbi gripped onto his arms as to steady herself, before she leaned up and pressed her lips to his. It was such an impulsive action that the thought of it being wrong only crossed her mind moments later. And when it did. Eunbi panicked for real. She stepped back so fast she almost tripped on her feet.

“Sorry. I . . . I -” she cut herself short, hurried out of there, and vanished into her room where she locked the door and collapsed on the bed. Eunbi had probably made the biggest mistake of her life.