Smoke Me.

Chapter 5: Mulled Wine

"Does it hurt?"

"No."

The sound of our forks scratching the plates and the dripping of the faucet was starting to drive me crazy.

"I promise that they'll never bother you again."

"I believe you, Fred." I smiled to reassure him once more.

"Is there anything else we can talk about?"

"Sure." He approved, raising the glass and taking a sip.

"So, did your sister move in, or is she just visiting?" I casually inquired while staring at the pink and white dresses that covered half of the already big sofa.

He sighed deeply as if the subject alone was exhausting him.

"She's just visiting."

He looked into the distance, narrowing his eyes as if he could see her on the wall. And then he whispered, "I hope."

"You loveee her." I teased.

"Of course, I do." He straightened up in the chair. "She's just...a bit...she nags sometimes..." Fred's back relaxed into its usual curve as he stared at his plate without taking one bite.

"About?"

"Anything. I mean..." he lifted his napkin and showed it to me. "The woman doesn't like my napkins. My napkins! What's wrong with them?!"

"I couldn't say." His sudden outburst amused me.

"Nothing, I tell you! You wipe what needs wiping, you throw them away and then you buy new ones! Isn't that their function? But no, they must be colored depending on the season, your mood, or something!"

My laughter began softly, then got louder when he went to the cupboard and took out a round, white plate, and began gesturing with it.

"You want to know what's wrong with this plate?"

"Yes, please," I said in between chuckles.

"It's round...but it should be a square. And preferably, a flower must be painted on it. Not flowers, but a flower. Why? 'Cause, that's what you want to see next to your food! Only one God damn flower!"

He sat back down, picked up his fork, and presented it to me as if he remembered something.

"Don't you think this fork is too big? If it's smaller, then it would help us lose weight! Who knew? Nutritionists all over the world should forget all they've learned during years of studying and start listening to my sister instead!"

"Stop, my cheeks hurt." I was holding onto my belly since it started to hurt from laughing.

"It's not funny. She's been here for only two days and she covered my bed with pillows. She used my card to buy ten cushions, ten! And they're more expensive than my clothes!"

"This is too funny."

"How? I don't have room to sleep. She didn't even ask me... she's spoiled. I'm telling you."

I drank some water in an attempt to calm myself down, then wiped the tears that had gathered in the corner of my eyes with a smile.

"But you still lovee her."

He sighed, but this time, grinning, "Speaking of love...how's your love life going?"

The expression on Jungkook's face when I left just after hugging him flashed into my mind's eye as if it were a real picture that someone had taken.

"I am not sure," I said and then went right back to playing with my broccoli.

"You've confessed?"

"Well, sort of, yeah."