There are Many Flowers in Seoul

Chapter Ten

The apartment was full of the smell of grilled meat, vegetables, and artificial cheese powder. Despite Yuta's best efforts to convince the teenagers that noodles weren't a major food group, he succumbed to pressure and compromised by ensuring their daily nutrients were available in the form of shared side dishes.

'Twenty minutes and you're already causing trouble,' he sighed when they regaled him with tales of their adventures in vigilante justice, saving the property of a man from a bag snatcher who was overcome by their strength and courage.

It was fair to say that Hitomi had embellished the circumstances a tad.

Telling him, 'Well, he fell over Rose and was too stupid to get back on his feet quickly,' didn't create quite the same impact.

Rose pushed a slice of beef down into the broth with the tips of her chopsticks, her eyes on the table. She'd hoped he might show a little more compassion for her given she'd been left grazed and bruised by the man and hadn't sought out trouble in the first place. All she'd wanted to do was to buy more sugar than was healthy, return to the apartment, and stuff it all into her face before she could think about what might happen to her hips. The whole point of leaving Japan was that it meant she could have a quieter life, free from the attention of strangers and men, not so that they could harass her on airplanes and fall over her in the street. True, none of those men had known who she was or demanded money from her, so it could be considered progress, but it was hardly fun.

The metal chopsticks clanged at the bottom of the brass bowl, and she raised her gaze to glare at Yuta, quietly blaming him for not going with them. Had he been there, it might never have happened, and Rose also might not have ended up with a huge credit card bill that she'd have to explain to her parents when she got home. Neither of them would be thrilled that she'd charged for snacks.

'Don't look at me like that,' Yuta said, resting his chopsticks across the bowl. 'You're the ones who wanted to go out by yourselves.'

'It's not like we said you couldn't go with us. You could've offered.'

'I was trying to organise my files for tomorrow. Some of us are here to work.'

'God, you're such an adult,' Rose complained. 'Why can't you just relax and have a little fun? Buying snacks and exploring won't kill you.'

'Right, because it worked out so well for you.'

Rose slammed her utensils down onto the table and stood from her chair. 'I'm finished,' she said furiously.

'Sit down. You've barely eaten,' Yuta ordered.

'Rose, come on,' Hitomi urged, hoping to play the peacemaker. 'This is really good, and we didn't eat lunch. Please?'

'I'll have snacks,' Rose decided.

'Hey, no!' Yuta called after her as Rose stormed across the living area to reach her bedroom. 'Come back here and finish dinner.'

Rose spun on her heel and snapped at him childishly, 'You're not my father, Yuta! You're not even my brother!'

'But I told your parents that I'd take care of you!'

'I don't need you to take care of me. I'm an adult!'

'Then act like one!' he bellowed. 'Stop acting like a spoiled child and eat the food that I prepared for you!'

If he'd thought to ask her nicely or had apologised for speaking to her like she was five-years old, Rose would have returned to the table without a second thought. Her love for Yuta had endured for so many years that the odd cross word here and there wouldn't have tarnished her feelings for him, just so long as he knew that he was expected to be the first one to offer an olive branch after an argument. But his insistence on talking down to her and calling her spoiled only served to set her fury aflame.