The Elephant Between Us || SKZ

chapter two

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THE EARLY BIRD GETS THE WORM

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"So... Are you moving in?" Jeongmin asked as they reached the third floor, glancing at the male following her through the narrow staircase. 

"Oh, no, not really."

She automatically raised her eyebrows and gave the box in her hands a sneak peek.

Shirts and... more shirts?

"My brother. He is the one moving in." The boy answered the question Jeongmin had still inside her head with a smile, uncomfortable with the sudden silence.

Some people definitely weren't born to lead with the pressure created by the silence between two human beings climbing up the stairs, and Jeongmin didn't need to be a great genius to figure out that guy was for sure one of those people.

"So I'm helping him with these boxes and a few more things."

"Interesting." She answered as they finally got to the fifth floor, letting out a sweet chuckle. "Is he obsessed with shirts or something?"

"Hm?"

"Sorry, I was curious." She mumbled and blushed lightly, smiling as he did too. Although he didn't mind her peaking inside the box, he said no words.

Jeongmin was starting to feel a little like those people, those who couldn't just stand the silence in staircases.

Then, the boy turned to the left and Jeongmin followed, stopping by the last door of the corridor. 

"And I suppose you're not moving in with him...?"

"Exactly." He paused, searching for the keys in the pockets of his jeans and opening the door as he got them, the right foot pushing the door. "He's here for college and dating and all those things you can imagine going on at his age-" The boy said with a funny smile and a roll of eyes, looking away from Jeongmin when he was suddenly interrupted.

"Jeongmin?"

A familiar voice suddenly came from behind them and, as she turned to look back, her eyes widened seeing her brother coming out from the apartment in front of the male whose name she didn't even have the compassion to ask for.

She had just remembered that.

"Who is this?" Jeongin asked, looking up and down at the boy.

Great question, genius.

"Ahm..." She mumbled, slowly turning her head to look at the boy again and quickly giving the male his box.

"Do you happen to know this guy?" He whispered near her ear discreetly.

"Brother." She whispered back, smiling at Jeongin whose eyebrows were already raised and whose arms were starting to fold.

"Oh! Call me Bangchan." The boy moved the boxes and held them with one arm only, extending the other to greet her brother, who did not move an inch. "Okay..." He gulped, feeling the giant pressure of Jeongin's glare on his shoulders.

"Well, it was a pleasure to help you with those." Jeongmin hurried to get to her brother's side, holding one of his folded arms as she smiled at Bangchan and pointed at the heavy boxes full of things she definitely was no longer curious to know about. "But we gotta go now, have plenty of things to do."

Not even giving Bangchan the chance to say goodbye, Jeongmin entered her apartment and pulled Jeongin inside with her, her eyes looking deadly serious at his once the door was finally closed.

"Are you kidding me?" She asked, hands on her hips.

"No, I'm not! What is your idea? Are you seriously going to make us lose everything again? Because, Jeongmin, I swear to God, I swear I'm not coming with you next time!" 

"Stop yelling at me." She said lowly, looking down at her feet as all her body seemed to constrict. 

"I'm not yelling at you!!" He said even louder, not thinking even once. "I- I thought you said you'd be careful around! You promised me that, Jeongmin! You promised me nothing would be the same! That you learnt the lesson!! That-" He stopped, his chest coming up and down as he realised what he had just done. "F.ck." He mumbled, bringing his hands to uncover his forehead, his eyes closing.

Jeongmin hated it. She hated when people shouted at her, mainly when it was her brother, her older brother, doing it. It always scared her, and Jeongin knew it better than anybody else.

"I am sorry." The huge amount of regret he felt was notorious. "I am really sorry. I was swept up by the moment."

"I..." Jeongmin started, avoiding her brother's gaze, ashamed. "I was just trying to cause a great impression to the neighbours." She gulped, snuffling. "Getting us allies."

"Allies?" Jeongin raised his eyebrows and approached Jeongmin, landing his hands on her elbows, much calmer. "What do you mean?"

"We need to think smarter this time, Jeongin. We need everyone here to believe we're good people." She finally looked into his attentive eyes. "Otherwise, we'll be kicked out of this apartment before we even know it."

"Just be careful and keep your distance, okay?" Jeongin added as he connected his forehead with hers, his heart beating faster as he had just come to his senses: that was an opportunity they just couldn't throw into the bin. "They'll trust us, Jeongmin, we got this."

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