Hanni was a bit... flushed. Well, for starters, her mother had woken her up so early in the morning and made her go downstairs immediately. She was planning to stay for the whole duration of summer in her hometown, a bit of an away time from the hustle and bustle of city life. Oh, also, her academic responsibilities and the stress of paying her own bills. So, a little disturbance from her mother wasn't something she wanted to be annoyed at. It was the repercussions, as she called it.
Of course, Hanni, half-asleep and stomach growling from wanting breakfast, easily complied—only to see a familiar face sitting on the couch.
She almost fell on the stairs, saved by the railings at the last second. Her mother looked at her with a questionable eyebrow, her eyes narrowing as she straightened up. She only chuckled nervously, trying to fix her hair and look as presentable in her pajamas.
"You remember Minji, right?" Her mother asked. She nodded, a little shy and reluctant.
Of course. How can she forget? Minji was a childhood friend of hers. They met at a gathering once because their mothers went to the same church and it hit off from that. Minji was a little bit older than her but they did get along quite well. Honestly, too well that she harbored some sort of crush and admiration towards her cheeky playmate that always showed her a variety of stones that she found along the river or told her science facts that were way, way ahead of her comprehension.
It was pretty cute, looking back and remembering all the time they spent together.
Although, once Minji was 13-years-old, she had to attend school in a different city and live with her relatives. She never saw Minji again after that, well, until now— 12 years later.
Minji looked... different. A whole lot different. She looked taller, her legs awkwardly squeezed between the coffee table. Well, she always was taller compared to Hanni but that was beside the point. Also, she looked dangerously enticing, her features more mature and darker.
Hanni could feel her cheeks warming up as she caught herself staring. She rubbed her nape as her mom dragged her to sit at the loveseat adjacent to where Minji was sitting. She also noticed how the woman dressed up differently from her younger self. A younger Minji was always wearing some worn-out baggy hoodie and to see her figure hugged by a tight-fitting turtleneck was almost whiplash.
"Hello," Minji greeted, her voice startling Hanni from how different it was since she remembered it. "You're all grown up, huh?" She humored, chuckling softly. It seemed like Minji was still the jokester that lightened up everybody's mood.
"Yeah." Hanni mumbled. Minji only smiled brightly, nodding. That wasn't any different either. It was still the same smile that she had years ago.
Maybe the only difference was that she wanted to smooch it out of her face and shove her tongue inside of her mouth–
Hanni shook her head slightly, catching her thoughts and throwing it deep, deep within the vault of her mind. Minji was an older sister figure, for fuck's sake, and her being hot doesn't change the fact that they grew up together.
Honestly, she just wanted Minji out of her sight even if they didn't see each other for such a long time. She feared the growing feeling of wanting to jump Minji's bones boiling inside the pits of her stomach. It was bad enough that Minji had her legs slightly spread as she slumped down, her broad shoulders for viewing pleasure.
"Well, Minji is staying with us for the meantime." Her mother tapped her shoulders, pulling her out of her trance.
"What?" Hanni's eyes widened, a loud gasp slipping out of her lips.
"It's only for the meantime." Minji said sheepishly, noting the younger's reaction and assuming that it was because of an impending awkwardness that was soon to come. "I hope you don't mind, Hanni."
"I was–uh, just shocked, that's all–!" Hanni reasoned frantically, their eyes meeting as if magnets. Oh, boy, that knocked the air out of her lungs. Minji was looking at her intently, a little pout on her plump lips.
Did Minji's lips always look that soft? Did her hands always look that huge, her fingers slender and long? Did her jaw always look that sharp and defined? Did her eyes always look so... captivating, so entrancing?
It was as if she was sent to an alternate universe where Minji's mother didn't drag her daughter to church every week. No nerdy little brat that always climbed their neighbor's tree just to pet a cat or gotten her clothes all wet from picking up shiny little rocks on the riverbank.
"It's for the research that she's conducting." The woman beside her proudly said, elbowing her ribs to get her attention. "How amazing is that, darling?"
"It's, uh, about rocks, actually." Minji added shyly, rubbing her hands together. She was obviously holding herself back from gushing over her unusual love and passion for it.
Minji was still a younger version of herself, it seemed. Just hot but still somehow a geek underneath. Hanni wanted to giggle but Minji might take it the other way so she decided to keep it to herself, a small smile creeping up on her lips.
"Oh, then, should we clean up the guest room?" Hanni asked, looking at the two back and forth.
She felt more enthusiastic at the thought of rekindling their friendship that she almost forgot her unwelcome thoughts earlier.
"She's staying in your room, honey, just like when you were kids!" Her mother hummed, smiling at her fondly as she recalled the memories of their sleepovers.
Hanni blinked, not quite sure if she heard right.
"Except if we figure out where to put all of your father's junk elsewhere. You know how he gets when we touch his stuff, right?" She elicited a soft laughter, shoulders rising in amusement as she tapped her daughter's arms.
"Oh." Hanni said breathlessly, realization finally hitting her.
Oh.
Oh no.
