𝐂𝐑𝐔𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆, 𝙇. 𝙎𝙪𝙝𝙮𝙚𝙤𝙠 ✔️

chapter three

Chan-mi's parents have died.

She knew that a long time ago, even if her aunt tried to save her innocence with some lies, the little girl figured it out quickly. The painful look her aunt had every time she saw her, the pitiful glances her uncle threw at her, they weren't great at hiding it. Anyway, they accepted her as their own and she had a happy life.

It happened when she was five. The thing that took her parents away, her house even her dog. She lost everything and had to rebuild it again.

she was five when it happened and her aunt, Cheong-san's mother, was taking care of her.

Sometimes we remember bad memories better than good memories. Perhaps that was why the day they died she remembers so clearly.

Chan-mi and Cheong-san were just kids back then. Two of them were in the kitchen pretending to make pancakes as they scolded each other for putting on the wrong ingredients.

"Yah, you put too much salt!" Cheong-san told a girl with two little bums. She glared at him.

"No! It is not salty enough!" She argued as she added more salt into the bow that had a bit too much of everything. It was green colored almost brown, and it smelled like a mix of old bananas and vinegar.

"They are supposed to be sweet, not salty!" He complained as she showed the bow into his chest. He caught it clumsily almost destroying their artwork. He glared at her.

"then what do you want to add, huh?" she raised her chin at him.

The boy thought for a second. His eyes searched through the kitchen in search of the perfect musty sweet ingredient.

" potatoes!"

"ew no I don't like potatoes," Chan-mi grimaced.

"What?" He looked at her, frustrated, as she just turned around. " We ate it yesterday!"

" so?"

Bow cut boy took the bow into his hands ready to throw it at his cousin. But in a second of silence, they heard a cry.

"y-y-yes I u-understand" Chami's aunt was leaning on the wall talking on the phone while tears ran down her cheek. She sat down on the floor feeling like she was going to pass out.

"are you here Mrs?"

"Mama, why are you crying?" two confused children walked toward her.

" Auntie?"

Cheong-san's mother didn't look at him at all. She stared at the two burned girls next to him as she took her small hand hot tears running through her face. Her eyes were red and full of pain. The little girl squeezed her hands, wanting to confront her aunt not knowing what her aunt was crying for. Such an innocent soul thought Cheong-san's mother.

"Chan-mi you will stay with us for now"

Small Chan-mi was confused back then. Why does she have to stay with her aunt? She has her own house, mum, dad even a dog. Who would take care of Quack if not her? She went to school and had friends there.

The older Chan-mi understands now. That night her aunt was talking with a firefighter and it was the fire that took everything for her.

***

"Wake up shithead!" Cheong-san got a zero reaction from her she was a deep sleeper. The kind of deep sleeper that volcano explosion wouldn't wake her up. She had the nightmare again and had to get back her 24-hour sleep better known as Chan-mi hibernation.

Cheong-san signed. On-jo was waiting for him, but he couldn't leave his cousin like that. On-jo and chan-mi were friends, but the girl refused to go with them not wanting to third-wheel.

He pushed her from her bed. "Yah!" Her body flopped down like she was some kind of slime as she continued sleeping like nothing had happened and drooling a bit.

"I am not paid enough for this" He looked at her with disappointment. She can be late he doesn't care.

He grabbed the door and glanced at his cousin with messy hair and a droll on her face. Cheong-san groaned. Maybe they argued a lot about meaningless things. Those were normal siblings' arguments. He cared for her as a sister. He tried his last try, third luck they say.

He put his finger into her ear.

She jolted awake. "You idiot!" She glared at him.

"well, you are going to be late, not me!" He ran out of her room.

Chan-mi checked the clock. Oh shit.

Suddenly wide awake, she jumped and ran downstairs, grabbing her food. She stopped for a second noticing Cheong-san didn't take his portion. They needed to eat well always said to her aunt. They were still young and growing.

"his problem" she shrugged, but she took his chicken too not wanting him to steal her food.

***

Chan-mi ran for her life to school. The brown-haired girl didn't want to stay afterward cleaning. She had experienced that once, but she had no luck that day. That day she just needed to pee, and she even got the teacher's permission, but on her way to the bathroom school director caught her and didn't believe her at all. She stayed at school cleaning the bathroom.

She noticed a familiar girl. "Hey, Jimi-ah!"

Jimin turned around and saw her classmate. She waved at her parents and then caught up with her classmate. Two of them relaxed as they passed the barrier.

They stopped so they could breathe. Jimin breathed heavily as she put her hands on her knees. Chan-mi signed as she took a water bottle drinking from it. Sweat dripped down her forehead. Chan-mi looked back at students that were stopped and as she recognized on-jo she looked at her pitifully.

"looks like luck isn't on On-jo's side today" Chan-mi pointed out as she spotted Cheong-san between students that passed.

Jimin turned her head, stopping on-jo at the unlucky crowd. " looks like her boyfriend left her"

"they are cute tho" Chan-mi commented. Jimin grimaced.

"lets just go" Jimin took Chan-mi's hand not wanting to discuss the relationships with her friend right now.

**

Chan-mi looked behind her, searching for a guy who was seated behind her, but all she found was an empty desk. He was supposed to be here five minutes ago. She wasn't worried about him. She knew he could fight well even so. Her eyes roamed through the classroom. Jimin caught her looking as she looked at her with a smirk.

"Do you have a foot fetish?" Jimin asked, wiggling her eyebrows. Chan-mi looked at her with wide eyes as she slapped her hand.

"no ew" she grimaced.

"Then why do you keep looking for bare-su?" Jimin asked her, trying to make Chan-mi admit that she grew attached to the boy who sat behind her. Chan-mi rolled her eyes.

"Just because" she answered, trying to not show anything to Jimin. when Jimin gave her another glance she slapped her arm "shut up! I don't like him"

"Sure you don't," Jimin agreed with her sarcastically. "oh here goes your lover boy"

When she said that, Chan-mi turned around, grabbed the closed notebook, and pretended that she didn't notice him walking up to the boys.

"Su-hyeok!"

"I can smell your feet from here"

"This jerk didn't wear socks."

She glanced up from the book as her eyes met his. He smiled at her as he turned around to talk with the boys. Chan-mi could feel her cheeks go red as she quickly hides behind a book. Stop it she chanted in her head, as she could feel the heat on her cheeks.

She heard Jimin's laugh: "it is upside down"

"What?" Chan-mi asked.

Jimin just took the book from her and turned it around as Cham-mi hit the table with her head not wanting to look at anyone right now. How embarrassing.