The Assemblage

19

Taeyeon

"Bakit ba kasi pinipilit niyo? We all know we're not cousins!" The raven-haired girl exclaimed as she talked to her parents on the phone. I rolled my eyes, who says she's the only want unhappy about the situation. I just came back from the U.S. tapos ito bubungad pagbalik ko ng Seoul.

The whole trip to Seoul was peaceful, although something feels off with Yoona and Sunny aside from that, I can say that we became closer to the guys than we were before Siyeon unnie's wedding. Kris and Luhan are still in L.A., nagpa-iwan talaga sila dahil nandun naman si Jessica at Tiffany, plus they're processing Blake's papers. Tao was the only one who went back to China, taking a separate flight than us.

"Why do you have to renovate my house without my consent! I seriously can't understand why you need to decide on everything in my life!" she bellowed, stomping her feet.

"Do you have food here? I came from Gangnam. It took me 3 hours to reach your house," she asked, surveying my house. "I'm living here for a while. You don't have a say about it because Auntie already gave me the go signal to stay here," she added, sitting on the couch in front of me.

"Gosh, why do I even have to look after you," I muttered under my breath, making my way to the kitchen. "Hoy I heard that!" she yelled from the living room.

"Where were you anyway? Bakit hindi mo alam na pina-renovate 'yung bahay mo?" I asked, sliding a bowl of noodles across the dining table where she's sitting. "I just came back from a tour. Ikaw? You were not here yesterday, where were you?" she asked back making me roll my eyes. She's definitely like Seohyun but with a bad temper.

"I was out for almost two weeks. I attended my manager's wedding in Greece and went to the U.S. afterward," I answered, crushing the garlic for her. "Oh, so you had a mini-reunion with the girls? That's nice," she commented, taking the crushed garlic from me, mouthing the words 'thank you' on the process.

"We did, and EXO was also there,"

"Oh my gosh! I mean, wow, are they complete?" she clears her throat, straightening her back.

"No, Xiumin, Jongdae, and Kyungsoo were absent," I replied causing her smile to fade. "Ah, that's a pity," she mumbled and continued eating.

I opened my phone only to see Baekhyun's message 3 hours ago. "Listen, Baekhyun's coming over to get his powerbank, kung ayaw mong makita ka nila you can hide upstairs," I told her and hurriedly reached for the vacuum. Nakakahiya, my house looks like a mess. "Kaka-meet niyo lang sa Greece tapos magkikita ulit kayo, kayo na ba ulit?" she asked, eyes glinting with malice. I raised the vacuum and acted like I'll throw it to her, making her laugh.

"Chill, I was kidding. I won't disturb you two, but it's just Baekhyun, I don't need to hide," she shrugged and continued eating. The doorbell rang, making me dash to the front door. I was greeted by Baekhyun, followed by Kyungsoo, looking more mature than usual with his military haircut. "Hi, pasok muna kayo, I wasn't done unpacking my things yet. Hintayin niyo na lang ako sa living room," I ushered them inside my house.

"IU?" Baekhyun asked as he peeked at the kitchen. Jieun sheepishly smiled, lowering a large portion of noodles she was trying to eat in one bite. "Hi andito pala kayo!" she greeted holding my wrist in a tight grip and dragging me upstairs. "Akala ko ba si Baekhyun lang!" she whispered angrily, fixing her hair as she looked at her reflection on the glass window.

"I didn't know he was bringing another person, tsaka ba't ka affected? Ikaw ha, akala ko tomboy ka," I teased and nudged her side. "Hindi no! Bahala ka nga diyan, I'll tell Auntie and Uncle that you're at it again," she said and fished her phone out of her pocket.

"Fine, fine, hindi na," I said, snatching her phone from her and delete what she's typing. Napakasumbongera talaga nito kahit kailan. "Just help me find his powerbank then they're off," I reassured and dragged her inside my room.

"Here you go," I said as walked my way downstairs, holding the powerbank in my right hand with Jieun shyly following me like a puppy. If I know nahihiya lang 'yan kaya ganyan. She's usually the friendly and accomodating type. The way she acts now is a surprise to me.

"Then we'll head out now, we are buying groceries because we'll be staying in one dorm again," Baekhyun stated as he stood up, standing next to Kyungsoo. "Oh, what a coincidence. Jieun and I are about to go to the market too," I smiled brightly and stood up. I don't know when I'll be able to see him again. I can't let this chance slip by.

"We are?" Jieun asked, staring at me in disbelief. "Yeah, I told you that earlier, nakalimutan mo?" tanong ko sakanya at pinandilatan siya ng mata. "Magpapa-iwan na lang ako, I'll rest here," she answered, glaring at me as if I betrayed her.

"Don't bring a car anymore, sama ka na lang sa'min ni Kyungsoo. Our dorm is a few minutes away from here, we'll just drop you off later." Baekhyun offered, making me nod. Why would I turn down things that I could benefit?

"In that case, I'll just stay here too. Two people are enough to complete the task," Kyungsoo stated, sitting down on the couch.

I tilted my head to look at Jieun looking pissed. I had to bite my tongue to suppress my laughter. I know she's regretting what she said earlier.

"You think they're doing fine?" I asked Baekhyun who's currently pushing two grocery carts. "Kyungsoo won't say a word if IU won't. He may look serious, but the truth is, he's just shy," he replied, putting in a few trays of eggs in their cart. I was looking at the information at the side of a cereal box, knowing that Jieun is allergic to nuts, and she hates raisins.

"I almost forgot. This was given to me by a fan, I figured it will look good on you," he said showing me a silver necklace with a padlock pendant. "Thank you," I replied and placed the necklace inside my pocket. Mamaya ko na lang susuotin, nakakahiya naman kung siya pa 'yung maglalagay. "Don't worry about those two, they're adults. They can handle themselves," he reassured making me nod.

"IU is usually talkative. Maybe they'll exchange a few words," I said, worried that something might happen to Jieun. She's like a little sister to me, ayoko namang mamatay siya because of a heart attack. "She likes him," he stated making me look at him, "How do you know?"

"You look at me like that too," he replied, leaving me behind with my mouth wide open.