Family Complex | TWICE!FamilyAU

Ch2

"Jackson, status report!" Like a flip of a switch, Nayeon's personality changes as she stepped into the office. His lazy and childish mother turns into the feared tyrant of the stock market.

A tall and lanky man frantically shuffled files on his messy desk, trying to find the right documents to handover. After almost spilling his coffee twice, he finally found it and made his way into Nayeon's office. He gave them a sheepish smile before handing over the folder.

Nayeon meticulously read the contents of the document before sparing the man a glance. Jackson stood still next to Jihyo, waiting for her verdict. "Congratulations, you'll keep your job today."

The man sighed heavily and bowed his head before heading out.

"Must you be so cruel, Eomma?" Jihyo raised an eyebrow. His mother would always play God in the office, her employees were constantly afraid of getting fired or thinking if they'll be able to keep their jobs for another day. And yet everyone wants to work for her not only because of the great benefit they offer but also for work experience. You can automatically get hired anywhere if you stayed at Im Enterprise long enough.

Jihyo was just glad no one had gone crazy with how his mother run the business with an iron fist. Well, not yet, and hopefully never. That's why they provide HMO right off the bat.

"This is how we run things around here, Jihyo," Nayeon casually looked at her nails, getting bored by the minute. "Your great granddad did. Your granddad did. I did. And in the near future you will, too."

Jihyo cringed at the thought. He can't imagine himself being so... mean. He likes taking care of his siblings, not order them around to satisfy his every whim. Using his siblings as metaphor for regular employees was weird, though.

His mother caught his attention, mentioning for him to lower his head. He did so almost automatically and winced internally. He got down on one knee facing her, and felt her soft fingertips massaging his scalp.

"You're a natural born leader, Jihyo," Nayeon bend down to kiss the crown of his head and smiled gently. "Never doubt yourself."

—

Tzuyu sat on the bench behind the greenhouse. It was further away from the main school building but it was the only place she could find herself in peace away from nosy fan girls. Studying in a private all girls' academy wasn't easy, constantly being surrounded by hormonal teenage girls especially when they dubbed her as their 'princess'.

She would always come here on her free time. Avoiding everyone and only silently slipping into class or archery practice in the nick of time since they can't bother her then. Tzuyu would kill time by doing homework or staring at the blooming hydrangeas in the greenhouse. She briefly wondered why they were even in the greenhouse in the place because those flowers are everywhere. And so many, too.

'Is the gardener being lazy?' She thought.

"Kyaa~" Someone interrupted her train of thoughts with their clumsiness. Tzuyu stared at the student sitting on the ground and quietly observed the girl from her hidden position. The girl was blonde, and wearing the standard uniform except for the pink cardigan instead of the dark blue blazer issued by the academy.

"She must be new if she's already violating the dress code." Tzuyu mumbled. The school was very strict with their dress code and only a few handful of students completely goes against it. The academy has a rule for everything, from the length of their skirt to the color of their contact lenses.

"Owie~" The girl tried to stand up but something was preventing her from standing upright. Small droplets of blood dripped from her injured knee and spattered on the pavement. Tzuyu reacted immediately, thinking it was time to help the girl instead of watching her creepily from the darkness.