“Bye, oppa! I’m leaving!”
The girl came running downstairs into the kitchen, her steps light and hurried, hair still slightly messy from the rushed tying of it moments earlier. There was an excitement in her voice that immediately filled the room, the kind that always made the others pause for a second—because whenever she sounded like that, it meant she was feeling good enough to forget her usual caution.
“Be careful!” her brother shouted after her without even turning fully around, knife still moving rhythmically against the cutting board.
The words were automatic, deeply ingrained—less a warning and more a habit born from years of worrying too much and trusting the world too little when it came to her.
“Mhhmm!” she hummed in response, leaning up to press a quick kiss to his cheek.
It was warm, familiar, and done so naturally that it almost made him stop mid-motion. Almost.
He let out a small breath through his nose, shaking his head faintly as if reminding himself not to overthink it.
“Where are you going, Soul?” Kun asked, lifting his gaze from the counter.
His tone was calm, gentle—but his eyes sharpened just a little. It wasn’t suspicion. It was instinct. The kind that came with being responsible for more people than he ever planned to be.
“I’m meeting my friends, and I’m staying there!” she replied brightly, rocking slightly on her heels.
There was no hesitation in her voice—only excitement and the comforting certainty that this plan, at least to her, was harmless.
"Wait—you're going alone?" Yuta asked immediately, straightening up.
His brows pulled together, concern flashing openly across his face. He didn’t try to hide it. With her, he never did.
"Mhhmm! We are—"
She barely got the words out before the air in the kitchen shifted.
"You’re not going alone," Yuta interrupted firmly.
Not harsh. Not angry.
Just final.
"What? Why? They’re alrea—"
Her voice cracked slightly in confusion, surprise flickering across her face.
"Sorry, shorty. Order from Taeyong."
Johnny entered the kitchen at that exact moment, carrying a heavy box of fresh vegetables like the timing had been perfectly choreographed.
He set it down with a soft thud, glancing at her with something between apology and amusement.
The words sounded casual—but the meaning behind them wasn’t.
The girl slowly turned her head toward her brother.
He met her gaze with a distinctly mischievous grin, the kind that immediately made her suspicious.
That grin told her everything she needed to know—and exactly nothing she wanted to hear.
"Seriously?" she asked flatly.
One eyebrow lifted. Her excitement deflated just a bit, replaced by realization slowly settling in.
"Well, you can go on your own," Jaehyun said calmly, not even looking at her as he continued cutting the meat with infuriating composure,
"but I promise you, you won’t even be able to open the front door before he realizes you ignored his order."
He paused just long enough to glance at her, the corner of his mouth twitching.
"And then you’ll be carried back inside like a sack of potatoes."
"You knew he ordered that… and you still let me go, knowing they’d stop me?!" she exclaimed, half offended, half incredulous.
Jaehyun simply shrugged his shoulders.
"I never said I wouldn’t enjoy watching it happen."
His grin widened just enough to make it clear—yes, this was intentional.
