Different

°•♤•° Chapter Twenty-Four °•♤•°

        °•☆•° Word Count: 2,249 °•☆•°
      °•♡•° Time to Read: 12 mins °•♡•°

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Gentle morning light shined through the white sheer curtains, slowly growing brighter as the sun rose. The only sound in the room was the soft snoring that slipped out of Minho's mouth every few seconds. He had ended up on his back during the night with one arm over his stomach, and the other splayed out to his side as if he were reaching for someone.

A particularly loud snore disturbed his own sleep, causing him to shift in his sleep. He rolled over on his side, trying to escape the light from the window to his left. He squeezed his eyes shut, then peaked out through one sleepy eye.

"Buh!" He screamed incoherently, flinching backward into a sitting position. A pair of wide eyes looked back at him, scared by the sudden shouting.

"Jisung, you scared the shit out of me," Minho exclaimed.

The brown haired boy looked at him apologetically. "Sorry, I didn't want to wake you up," Jisung mumbled. He was lying on his stomach with his head resting on his crossed arms.

Minho sighed and shook his head, wiping the sleep from his eyes. "It's okay. How long have you been up?" He asked.

"Like an hour," Jisung admitted.

"You should have woke me," Minho replied, his voice deeper from just waking up.

"But you looked so peaceful," Jisung countered, looking up at him from where he laid. Minho shook his head at him, having no other argument.

Just then, the door to his room was bust open, causing the pair to jump at the sound of the door hitting the wall.

"Wakey, wakey, children!" Nari bellowed. "It's time to eat!"

With that, she stomped off and down the stairs, leaving the boys to look at each other in mild shock. After a moment, they laughed, finding the interaction entirely ridiculous.

"Good morning to you too," Minho joked, knowing full well that she was out of earshot.

The pair eventually decided to get up and follow after her. As soon as they walked downstairs, they could smell the sweet aroma of Western pancakes mixed with the savory scent of bacon. Christmas music filled the entirety of the first floor, the chiming bells and whistles of carols bouncing around the walls.

When they entered the kitchen, Jisung decided to take a seat at the island counter, while Minho stood behind him, swaying slightly as he tried to fully wake himself up.

"Merry Christmas!" Laura called out to them from the stove. She flipped the pancakes on the pan in front of her with a pair of metal chopsticks, humming to the songs emitting from the living room TV.

"Man, you'd think I woke you guys up at six in the morning," Nari commented, noting the sleepy aura surrounding the duo at the kitchen island.

"What time is it?" Minho asked groggily.

"It's nine-thirty," Nari replied, shaking her head at the small nod that her response produced.

"Food's done," Laura announced, placing the last of the pancakes onto the stack on the plate she had set to the side. Nari helped her bring the food to the already-set table, making sure to be careful of the hot plates.

Everyone sat at their usual spots, with Laura at the head of the table, Nari to her right, and the boys to her left. Everyone filled their plates with servings of crispy bacon and vanilla-scented pancakes as they began to chat.