“Can I come in?”

At that point, Sooyoung was frozen. Her gaze was fixated on her mother’s, silently analyzing the way the older woman shifted her weight from one foot to another as the concern remained etched across her face. Key looked up from his seat on the rocking chair, lifting himself to his feet with a sigh as he made his way to the door. Greeting the older woman with a feigned smile plastered across his face, he bowed and placed a hand on Sooyoung’s shoulder.

“Sohee-noona!” he exclaimed, as though he weren’t just grumbling under his breath. “Come in, please. Sooyoung, let her by.”

Reluctantly, the tall brunette backed into the living room so that her mother could enter. The usual twinkle in her eyes was absent as she shut the door behind them.

“Why are you here?” she finally asked, arms now crossed defiantly across her chest.

“Is that any way to greet your mother?” Sohee eyed her daughter, looking back towards Key who was attempting to usher her into the kitchen. Sooyoung shrugged, infuriating her mother even more.

“Uh – would you like a cup of tea? Or…?” Key called out awkwardly from the kitchen, attempting to seem busy with the cupboards as he spoke.

“Tea would be lovely.”

Nearly fifteen minutes had passed and the tension in the room remained thick. The trio was now seated at the dining table, none of their gazes aligned with one another’s. Sooyoung noticed the way that her mother was looking around at the house and knew exactly what was going through her mind.

“If you’re just hear to complain about the low standard of living you’ve been funding, I don’t want to hear it.”

Key’s breath hitched as he sat up, staring at Sooyoung out of confusion. What did she mean by funding?

“Sooyoung-ah, your father and I-“

“I said, I don’t want to hear it.”

Sohee slammed her teacup on the dining table, causing the younger pair to flinch and shift their attention to her.

“Then you’ll want to hear this. Initially, I took your side without a doubt. Your father overreacted when we picked you up after the business trip – you and I both know that. That’s exactly why I had no problem sending you money to upkeep yourself until you came to your senses and returned home.”

“Came to my senses?!” Sooyoung snapped, a dry laugh slipping past her lips. “The more I listen to you, the happier I am with the decision I made.”

“Sooyoung!”

“You’ve become so blinded by the fact that Dad supports you financially that you think money is the only thing that can give you a fulfilling life.”

The sound of a slap silenced the room.

Key dug his fingernails into his palm, internally reminding himself that this was an issue between them and that he had no place in losing his respect. After all, he could say all he wanted as soon as she were out the door.

“How do you think all of this looks?” The older woman mimicked her daughter’s sarcastic laugh, throwing her arms up in the air as she did and gesturing around her. “The daughter of one of South Korea’s most successful CEOs, running away from home to live with a boy during her high school days. And in such a deplorable home, no less.”

“I’m sorry, but were you always this rude?”

Sooyoung blinked back the tears that had begun to form in her eyes, catching a glimpse of Key as he folded his hands and rested them on top of the table in front of him gently. Although there was a voice telling her that she should stop him before he made the situation worse, another part of her urged him to continue.

“Excuse me?”

“Sohee-noona.” Key repeated her name, more carefully this time as he took a deep breath. “I am well aware that neither you nor your husband have ever liked me. I know that it has to do with the fact that I wasn’t raised by my parents and that your daughter chose to be friends with someone who would eventually amount to nothing in your eyes.”

“Key…” Sooyoung whispered his name as the tears spilled over, although he continued on.

“It might even make it worse that I have to take care of myself and that she chose to be in a relationship with me.” Sohee’s jaw clenched at that statement, but he ignored it. “But Sooyoung is right. Money isn’t everything. And I had no idea about you supporting her while she was living here, but if that money is being given to her out of haste, or out of you trying to get her to return home, well – I’ll find a way to support her myself.”

Sooyoung felt her heart break at the way Key so willingly sacrificed himself for her. Regardless of their relationship, she couldn’t have asked for a better friend at that moment. However, the bittersweet smile she felt forming on her face was quickly wiped away when she heard her mother cut him off.

“And how exactly do you plan to do that? Your grandmother died without leaving you a penny in her name, I’m sure.”

“Mom, that’s enough!”

Sooyoung could see that her mother had struck a nerve and the smile that grew on his face was menacing – she knew that he was only holding himself back for her sake.

“What my grandmother has left me is none of your business – and on that note!” Key slid his chair back from the table, rising as he did and motioning towards the door. “I think it’s time you leave.”

“Excuse me?”

Key’s eyes darkened, narrowing as he glared at Sohee. “You can disrespect me all you want and Sooyoung can handle her own issues with you because she’s strong enough to do so. But my grandmother did nothing to deserve your disrespect.” Sohee’s pride had been shattered – her face was flushed with anger as she glowered at Sooyoung, who remained speechless as she stared back blankly.

“I hope you know that you’re going to regret this decision.”

Slamming her chair back into its place, the older woman stormed towards the front door. Just as she was about to step outside, and without turning around, she muttered:

“And don’t expect to hear from me or receive any money after this. I’ll only be waiting to say I told you so.”

Key locked the door behind her, sighing as he turned back to walk into the dining room. As he awkwardly took the seat beside Sooyoung, he took her hand in his and her thumb gently.

“You okay, Soo?”

The usually vocal brunette simply nodded, her heartbroken gaze now fixated on the male’s brown orbs. Her concern wasn’t about finding money or taking out her frustration on her mother. It was about the way Key had just explained himself. Did he really think so lowly of himself? Even after all they’d been through over the years?

Choosing to ignore it – after all, he’d only call her ridiculous and turn it into a joke to make her feel better – she feigned a smile and wiped at the tears on her cheeks.

“At least it’s over!” she chirped falsely, cringing at the sound of her own voice. Key gave her a sympathetic smile, rolling his eyes. With a dramatic stretch, he tapped his finger against his chin.

“So, let’s recap. I’m probably going to lose my scholarship, I have to make at least twenty drawings for the fundraiser, Eunhyuk is crazily obsessed with you and getting revenge, Nicole is also psychotic and now your mother’s a complete monster.”

“It’s been a fun day, huh?” Sooyoung giggled, the sound bringing relief to Key’s stress as he shifted his chair closer to her so that she could rest her head on his shoulder. “Oh—! And I have to visit Principal Lee’s office tomorrow to talk about how detention went.”

“Well, that should be interesting.”

“Right? Now then.” Tapping his leg, the tall brunette planted a quick kiss on his lips before shuffling back into the living room. “I’m tired of drama in our lives – the real drama is about to start!”

“Why do you like those programs, anyway?” Key whined, following her soon after. “They’re so cheesy!”

“Like you’re not!”

“We’ve been stuck on this problem for hours!”

“Stop whining! You’re just not paying attention.”

“NOT PAYING ATTENTION?”

Shh!

Yoona flinched at the librarian’s harsh silencing, the group of girls surrounding her laughing under their breath as they looked up at an infuriated Sooyoung and an even more agitated Yoona. The week had passed quickly – as did the growing list of homework the girls had to complete over the weekend.

“You’re lucky you’re good at math,” the youngest sulked, crossing her arms as she looked between the worksheet in front of her and her friend beside her.

“I’m decent – and I’m just helping you, so you don’t have to sit right under Mr. Park’s big, goofy-looking nose.” Sooyoung made a show of flaring her nostrils, imitating their teacher and earning a laugh from the group in response. “Now, try to recalculate your formula. You were doing well until…” Pointing at the paper with her pen, she made a small asterisk. “…this point.”

Yoona groaned and returned to her work, resting her head against her fist as she tried to consult the textbook for guidance. As she did so, the older of the two looked towards Jessica and Yuri, who were scanning their history textbooks and jotting notes along the way.

“Who gives a quiz right after the first week of school?” The older lamented, angrily shoving her textbook away from her as she did. “Yuri and I can’t learn about the Sino-Indian War and get this done before midnight. Right, Yul?”

“…Yuri.” Sooyoung called out to the other, who was staring at her textbook aimlessly.

“Yuri!” Jessica snapped, raising the volume of her whisper.

“WHAT?”

Shh!

Laughing to themselves again, Jessica nudged the younger with a concerned smile. “You seem a little out of it. Usually, you’re the Sooyoung and I’m the Yoong in this situation.” Her joke failed to encourage even a chuckle out of Yuri, drawing further attention to her awkward behavior. “Okay, seriously. What’s wrong?”

“Did Minho beat you during the mile in P.E. again?” Sooyoung teased, immediately coughing when she noticed that mentioning her boyfriend seemed to bring her to the brink of tears. “Hey, it was just a jo—”

“A joke, I know.” Yuri sighed, looking up with red eyes at the girls in front of her. The worry etched on their faces told her that she needed to confess what was making her upset.

“Minho and I might break up.”

“WHAT?!”

“What about this one?”

“You look like a lemon. Why would you even buy that?”

“I don’t know, Sodam picked it out for me! We were fifteen!”

“And it still fits you?”

Onew and Key burst into a fit of laughter at the sight of Jonghyun’s bright yellow dinner jacket and the fact that it still fit after all these years. Frustrated at their reaction, Jonghyun shugged the blazer off and tossed it at their heads. With a groan, he returned to his closet as the pair on his bed continued to poke fun at his horrible formal wear.

“You’re overthinking this,” Key scolded, glancing at the older male as he dug through racks of suits.

“Listen, buddy.” Jonghyun zoomed out of the closet at an alarming speed, sending the former aback as he widened his eyes. “Jessica’s dad has hated me ever since we started dating and now, he’s actually willing to have dinner with me. If I screw this up, I go right back into idiot territory.”

“Then I definitely wouldn’t go with the yellow jacket,” Onew snickered, sending Jonghyun back into the closet with a sigh. “You’ll be fine! Just try not to open your mouth too much.”

“Or mention how great his daughter is in bed.”

“On second thought, don’t talk at all.”

“Or breathe.”

“Is it too late to cancel?”

“ENOUGH!”

Jonghyun returned into his bedroom, now clad in a deep gray blazer and a neatly pressed button-up shirt. His pants matched charmingly, as did his brown loafers. Although he looked a bit unlike himself, he was presentable enough for his girlfriend’s father.

“Congrats, you no longer look like a douche. Now change and come back here so we can figure out these last few questions.”

With a broad smile, he returned into the closet to change one last time when Key turned to Onew, whose eyebrows were furrowed in confusion at his phone.

“What’s wrong?”

“I called Minho five or six times already, even texted him. He took this class last semester so he has a bunch of notes we can use.”

“And he hasn’t sent you a message saying he’s busy or that he’ll call you later or something?”

“Nothing.”

“That’s not like him,” Key pointed out, quickly relaying the situation to Jonghyun as he reentered the room.

“Well, you know Minho.” Jonghyun placed his hands on his waist as he continued. “There’s only one place you’ll find him if he isn’t answering.”

“MINHO!”

Even though the tall male was sprinting on the treadmill with headphones placed in his ears and his music on its highest volume, he could recognize that shrill cry anywhere. Slowing his pace to a stop, he stepped off of the machinery and widened his eyes at the sight of three of his friends waiting on him.

“Is this some kind of weird intervention?” Minho panted, lowering himself onto the locker-room bench beside them as they entered. “Because I can assure you I haven’t done anything wrong.”

“Really? I called six times. Six!” Onew waved his phone angrily at the younger male, amusing the other two as they looked on. “And I texted! You always reply.”

“You sound even more paranoid than—” In the middle of a laugh, Minho’s face fell as he finished his sentence. “Yuri.”

Key quickly picked up on the change in his expression, interjecting before Onew began hollering again about his need for notes.

“Did something happen with you two?”

“I—” With a sigh, Minho continued hesitantly. “I got a full-ride scholarship opportunity for college. Soccer scouts came by this week to talk to us since they knew this is our senior year.”

“Dude, that’s amazing!” Jonghyun exclaimed, his interest quickly dimming as Minho continued.

“It’s at UCLA.”

[1 NEW MESSAGE] Key: Did you talk to Yul?

Sooyoung sighed at her phone, dividing her attention between the group of girls before her and her now-aware boyfriend. After annoying the librarian to the point of getting kicked out, the group decided to move their assignments and current existential crisis to their favorite café nearby. Quickly thumbing a reply to confirm, she reminded him that she’d be home late and to start dinner without her.

Turning back to Yuri, she pouted at the sight of her best friend’s tears and the way she tried so hard to keep it together.

“I mean, people do long-distance all the time. Right?” Yuri desperately sought confirmation, but quickly lost hope when the others looked at her doubtfully.

“Did he get any other offers?” Jessica suggested. “One in Korea? Or even Japan, maybe.”

Yuri shook her head sadly, bringing down the others’ spirits with her.

“Hey!” Sooyoung piped up, resting a hand on Yuri’s knee as she spoke. “It’ll be okay. You know Minho, he’s crazy about you. He’s just in his head because of how big a decision it is. Don’t assume you’re going to break up. Just hope for the best.”

“Profound advice from someone who just complained four times in a row about how long her crepe is taking to arrive.” Jessica earned a napkin to her head, lightening the mood as the food arrived soon after.

Looking up with a smile as her meal was set in front of her, Sooyoung caught glimpse of the “HELP WANTED” signed plastered at the counter near the register. Making a mental note to speak with the manager later, she happily dug in.

“Baby!” Sooyoung called as she slipped inside, attempting to thaw herself from the remainder of the winter as she shook off her coat at the door. “Key?”

Noticing that the lights were off throughout the house, the tall brunette assumed that he had retired to his room early and decided to head upstairs instead.

She was right.

Carefully opening his bedroom door so as not to make any noise, Sooyoung held back her giggle at the sight of him asleep at his desk; drawing paper surrounded him, a pile of crumpled up sheets tossed haphazardly at the trash can and his pencil still in hand.

“Hey, sleepyhead…” she cooed, tiptoeing over to him and slipping the pencil out of his hand. As she shifted him away from the desk, her breath stopped at the sight of his drawing.

If she weren’t mistaken, it looked exactly like her. She was seated on some sort of bench, although it was hard to tell because the drawing wasn’t finished.

Continuing to stare at it and attempt to decipher it, she didn’t notice Key had already woken up and lunged at the drawing so that it was hidden from her sight.

“No looking!”

“Okay, okay!” Backing up defensively, Sooyoung scrunched her nose at his reaction. “I figured it was for the fundraiser, I didn’t think it was such a big secret.”

“Uh—” Key laughed sheepishly, trying not to sound awkward as he did. “Yeah, I just want everyone to see the finished products.”

“Good to know I’m everyone,” the female of the two sneered jokingly, earning an eyeroll in response.

“I just really want the fundraiser to do well.” Key sighed as he began to slide into bed. “The scholarship situation’s not looking too hot right now.”

“It’ll be okay,” Sooyoung replied softly, moving to sit next to him and his hair as she spoke. “Everything will work out.” Though, with the recent turn of events, she wasn’t so sure herself.

Key hummed in response, a peaceful smile on his face as he nodded off. Sooyoung took note of how late it was – nearly one in the morning – and returned to her room to get ready for bed. Just then, her mind flickered to the “HELP WANTED” sign at the café earlier and she scolded herself for not remembering to talk to the manager.

Unable to sleep as she was reminded of their tight financial situation for the coming months, she began browsing the internet for any employment opportunities that were open to an inexperienced high-school student.

And then she realized something.

Hesitant and disappointed in herself as she dialed the number, she reminded herself that it was going to be helpful to both her and Key – it was about time she helped him out too, after all.

“Hey, I need to talk to you.”

- - - - - 

[ A/N ] well, well, well. guess who finally decided to update? (*＾▽＾)／ after a lot of deliberating, i decided i'm going to finish this story first – considering it's a sequel to an earlier fic – and move on to impulse after. those of you that are still reading on, please enjoy! and to any new readers who may have stumbled upon this – i hope you like it as well, and please excuse my horrible writing skills from earlier years. some well-needed shinee x snsd action.