WARM HUGS [SOOLIA]

Chapter 017

[This photo is not mine; credits to the owner🥺]

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"Stop it, or I'll actually smudge it for you." Beomgyu scoffed as he watched Jisu apply the tinted lip balm on her lips for the past minute. Jisu glared at him pointily before swatting his hands away when he actually tried to smudge it.

"Don't fret, everything will go well," Beomgyu assured through his chuckles, wiping away the fake tear that rolled down his cheek before taking out his house key and jamming it into the keyhole.

Jisu watched him in amusement as he pressed his body against the door, twisting and turning the key as he muttered a string of curses under his breath. She stifled a laugh when he nearly fell face flat when the door suddenly opened.

"What are you doing?" Jisu's eyes wandered over to the girl who was just a centimeter shy away from being as tall as her, with sharp features and eyes that sparkled beautifully.

"I brought over Soobin's girlfriend." Beomgyu huffed as he dusted himself off. The girl turned to lock eyes with Jisu, who offered a small smile and a tiny wave.

"Hello, I'm Yun-Jae." she introduced herself politely before inviting Jisu into the house. She then threatened to close and lock the door if Beomgyu didn't hurry up unlacing his shoelaces.

"Soobin cooked today, so it's just some ramen and instant tteokbokki." Yun-Jae grinned apologetically as she led Jisu through the hallway and into the dining room.

She froze slightly seeing Soobin setting the table up. He placed the pot of ramen on the table, his buttoned-up shirt sleeves rolled up to expose his forearms and therefore, the protruding veins making Jisu's heart beat a little bit faster.

"Is Beomgyu home early?-" Soobin hummed before he was cut off midway when he realized that Jisu was standing in front of him with a mesmerized look on her face.

"I brought Jisu! Dad's home today, right? Go call him, Yun-Jae." Beomgyu ordered his little sister as he pulled Jisu to the dining table, asking for her to sit. Yun-Jae rolled her eyes slightly at her brother before leaving to call for her father who had taken a short nap, grumbling along the way.

Soobin stared as Beomgyu put things on Jisu's plate with loud noises, like how a mother would. Jisu snuck glances at the boy, intimidated by how he towers over her, especially when she's sitting down.

Soobin watched her silently as she took a bite of the food, immediately complimenting him on the well-cooked meal. Jisu had resorted to just eating her food silently upon realizing Soobin wasn't going to talk to her.

"You curled your hair. The ends don't usually poof up like today." Soobin quietly pointed out his realization, making the other two look at him. Beomgyu looked at him with furrowed eyebrows while Jisu played with her hair, her cheeks tinting red as she felt shy knowing Soobin had noticed.

"I'm sorry, I can't do this," Soobin whispered before walking away quickly. Jisu's eyes followed his figure as he bumped into Yun-Jae and his dad, squeezing past them before hearing a door close behind him.

"Ok, maybe my foreshadowing isn't that good today," Beomgyu mumbled under his breath as he winced, knowing full well that he had brought Jisu's hopes up a little too high.

"Yeji was the last girl that came here. I think he got hurt at the memory." Yun-Jae quietly spoke up as she pulled out her chair to sit, her father following suit.

"I think I brought you here too early, sorry." Beomgyu apologized quietly as he looked at Jisu guiltily. Jisu's eyes widened as she shook her head slightly, regaining her composure, turning back to her food after reassuring Beomgyu she was fine.

"I heard about Yeji and Soobin. It's okay, I'll wait." Jisu excused softly as she stared at her bowl of ramen, willing herself not to bawl her eyes just because the boy she liked was still grieving his unrequited love.

"What's your name?" Jisu looked up at the sound of the new voice, locking eyes with the man of the household. Beomgyu patted her shoulder with a small smile before turning back to his food again.

"Choi Jisu, sir," Jisu replied politely, offering the widest smile she could muster. The elder looked at her before breaking into a fit of chuckles, nodding as he picked at his food with his chopsticks.

"Su-yah, take more of the tteokbokki. It may be instant, but he made it with a lot of love." A breathy chuckle left Jisu's lips as she nodded her head, letting Beomgyu put more tteokbokki on her plate for her.

"Su-yah," Jisu hummed obediently as she looked up from her food again to talk with their father. Jisu looked at him curiously as he paused for the dramatic effect.

"Call me father instead," Jisu's cheeks grew into a shade of deep red as she nodded her head, slightly annoyed that Beomgyu had kept on nudging her for she had indirectly got a blessing from their father to date Soobin.

Jisu's eyes trailed off to where Soobin had disappeared to. The only person she had to wait for was him, and she would wait forever for him.

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Soobin closed the door behind him before sliding down the door, letting out a deep sigh as he ran a hand through his hair in frustration. He let himself curl into a ball before resting his head on his knees.

He couldn't do it, it was way too early for him to be moving on so fast. Yes, he promised Jisu that she was the one he loved the most, but that didn't mean that he didn't love others.

He knew it was wrong, but could he really help it? He knew he was going on too fast of a pace, hoping that it would mean he'd recover from the pain faster. Clearly, it wasn't going according to plan.

A sob left his lips as he buried his head deeper into his knees, appreciating the darkness that seemed to engulf him and hide him from the world as they allowed him to cry.

He stayed there for a long time as he let his tears slip down without a word, other than the sobs he actually couldn't hold in. He tried to gather himself when he heard someone knock on the door softly.

He rubbed his eyes before opening the door, meeting eyes with his father. Seeing his son's teary eyes, his father sighed before opening his arms, allowing him to hug him and cry.

Soobin gladly took up the opportunity and let himself crash into his father's arms before bursting into another round of tears, at the point where he really didn't care if Jisu was there or not.

But judging by how both siblings watched him at the end of the hallway as stealthily as they could, Jisu had left.

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~Viky
☕🎶🌸